


Wolf in the Big City

by heytorchhead



Series: The Yoichiro Route [2]
Category: Camp Buddy (Visual Novel)
Genre: Angst, Developing Relationship, Humor, M/M, Romance, Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:15:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 25,753
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26649637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heytorchhead/pseuds/heytorchhead
Summary: Yoichi arrives in the capital to spend the weekend with Hiro, who is left reeling when an unexpected message threatens to re-open old wounds.  Sequel to "Winter Wolf".
Relationships: Hiro Akiba/Yoichi Yukimura
Series: The Yoichiro Route [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1938982
Comments: 18
Kudos: 53





	1. Super Jirou and the Carnivore Challenge

“Are you sure you’ve got everything?” Yoshinori asked. “Money? Keys? Spare clothes?”

“For the last time, yes!” Yoichi snarled. He gestured at the overstuffed travel bags piled beside him on the ground. “I’ve got everything but the damned kitchen sink! We didn’t take this much stuff the last time we went camping!”

Yoshinori continued to fuss over him like an anxious mother hen. “What about underwear? Did you remember to pack more than one pair? You can’t just turn them inside out, Yoichi!”

“GOD! Give it a rest, already! I’m only going for three days!”

“What about your bus ticket? Hmm. I’m not sure about this, you know. Public transport can be so unsanitary. I wish you’d let me drive you.”

“I am _not_ listening to you clucking for the whole trip there and back,” Yoichi said firmly.

“But it’s been so long since you’ve been out on your own like this! I’m just worried, Yoichi! I’d feel so much better if I could come along and keep an eye on you.”

“Someone’s got to stay at the camp, remember? Besides, I don’t need a damn chaperone.”

Yoshinori sighed, giving up. “Very well. And Mr Akiba is meeting you at the station, yes? I don’t want you wandering around the city on your own!”

“You mean like I did when I was twelve?” Yoichi dead-panned.

“Exactly! Who knows _what_ could have happened to you!” Yoshinori looked pained. “Maybe we should postpone this trip. Until someone could accompany you. Mr Akatora, perhaps.”

Yoichi shook his head. “No way. Me and Torch-head don’t need a third wheel hanging around. We’ve got stuff to do. Know what I mean?” Yoichi cocked his eyebrow.

“Oh. Er, yes, I see.” Yoshinori was flustered, as Yoichi knew he would be. His flow of anxiety was temporarily interrupted, allowing Yoichi time to escape.

“Well, that’s my ride,” Yoichi said, pointing toward a nearby bus that had pulled into the station. “And they’re letting people on board. Later, Sheriff.”

“Yoichi, wait!”

“Gah! What now?”

“Take this!”

“Huh?”

Yoshinori was holding something out to him. It was a small rectangle of silver metal and plastic. On closer inspection, Yoichi realised it was a cell phone.

“What’s this?” he asked.

“For emergencies,” Yoshinori explained. “It’s not a very up to date model, I’m afraid, but at least you’ll be able to contact me if you need anything. And I can check in on you.”

Yoichi took the cell phone and turned it over in his hands.

“I’ve already put my own number in there,” Yoshinori said. “And Mr Akiba’s. And the police. And the emergency services. The fire department, mountain rescue, the coast guard -”

“The _coast_ guard?” Yoichi exclaimed. “What the hell do you think we’re planning on doing?!”

Yoshinori smiled, embarrassed. “Well, perhaps I got carried away. But I’ll sleep better knowing I’ve covered all the bases. Are you sure you know how to work it?”

Yoichi studied the phone a second. “Yeah. Torch-head let me play with his a while back. Does this thing take dick pics as well?”

Yoshinori spluttered, bright red. “Yoichi! Of all the-”

Yoichi burst out laughing. “Don’t worry, I’ll figure it out.” He shoved the phone in his pocket.

Yoshinori looked him up and down. He took a deep breath and let it out, readying himself to let Yoichi go.

“Just be careful,” the Scoutmaster said. “And have a good time. And – here, let me-”

Yoshinori licked his thumb and started wiping off a mark on Yoichi’s face.

“Ack! Get off me, dammit! I’m outta here!” Yoichi fended Yoshinori off, grabbed his bags and ran for the bus.

“Call me when you get there!” Yoshinori cried out.

Yoichi waved without looking over. He disappeared inside the bus. The doors closed and, with an enormous hiss, the bus pulled out of the parking spot and left the station. Yoshinori watched it go until it vanished from sight.

His shoulders slumped. Yoichi acted tough, he knew, but the world was a dangerous place. The scout grown a lot over the past few years, yet his brash persona still got him into trouble more often than not. Yoshi realised he probably wouldn’t sleep a wink until Yoichi was safely back at camp on Monday.

Yoshi’s cell phone chirped in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw there was a text message waiting for him. It was from Yoichi’s new number.

It simply said: [thanks].

Yoshi smiled.

Despite his front, Yoichi was feeling a flutter of anxiety.

It had been a long time since he’d been out in a crowded public place like this. He was used to the quiet and peace of Camp Buddy. The sights, the sounds and especially the smells were a little overwhelming. He knew it would only get worse once he got to the capital. The thought reminded him of his years on the streets as a kid, and he felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise up. He forced the thought away and told himself to toughen up.

Besides, this would be an adventure! And a _real_ adventure, not like those lame camping trips the scoutmasters took them on. Anxious or not, Yoichi couldn’t help grinning with anticipation. It would be good to see Hiro again. They’d kept in touch by phone and during Hiro’s brief visits to the camp every few weekends, but it wasn’t the same. Hiro was always busy and distracted, running errands for his mom or trying to get their house fixed up for her return home in the spring. He rarely had time to spend the night, and during the day there was always someone hanging around the camp, robbing them of their privacy. This weekend, Hiro had promised, had been set aside for just the two of them.

Yoichi’s dick twitched a little in his pants as his memory treated him to flashes of their naked bodies, glistening with sweat and entwined together. Hiro’s cute little ass. The surprisingly firm muscles on that scrawny bod. His dorky smile. Yoichi would never have expected to be attracted to someone like Hiro before. He’d always preferred bigger, bulkier guys, tough dudes who were built like he was. Yoichi was therefore surprised to discover he liked _being_ the bigger guy even more. Holding Hiro close - or even better, flipping him around and bending him this way and that – made Yoichi feel even bigger, stronger and wilder than normal. And the _noises_ Hiro could make …

Yoichi shook his head to clear it, reminding himself he was in public. He didn’t want to get thrown off the bus for having a raging hard-on. Not again.

Yoshinori’s fussing had held them back, meaning Yoichi was just about the last person on board. The other passengers shuffled along the aisle ahead of him, and when the line cleared Yoichi saw that just about every seat was taken. All except one – the seat beside a creepy, skinny old dude who was leering at Yoichi with a brown-toothed smile. Yoichi suppressed a shudder as he approached the empty seat.

“Oh, I’m afraid you can’t sit there, son,” the old man said in a tremulous voice. “That’s Jemima’s seat.”

Yoichi looked around. “Huh? There’s no one else waiting.”

The old man pointed at his lap. Yoichi hesitated, then peered over the head-rest of the seat in front.

An ancient dachshund peered up at him from the old man’s lap. The dog’s fur was going grey and wispy in places, and one of its eyes was milky with cataracts. It was trembling slightly.

Yoichi looked around for help. None of the other passengers made eye contact with him.

His first instinct was to yank someone else out of their seat and take their spot for himself. Let _them_ deal with the creepy old dude and his zombie dog. Yet Yoshinori’s scolding face floated up in his mind as soon as he thought of it, admonishing him for even considering such an idea. That happened more and more often, these days. Usually when he wanted to do something fun.

Sometimes Hiro’s face floated up as well, telling him not to be such a dumb animal.

Yoichi took a deep breath and decided to try and use reason instead of his fists.

“Can’t she just keep sitting in your lap?” he asked the old man through gritted teeth.

“Oh, no, son. My frail old legs couldn’t hold her for the whole trip. I just keep her there until everyone else has sat down, so nobody sits on her. That’s happened before, you know.”

Yoichi sighed and mentally counted to ten. “Well, _I_ don’t have a seat. How about she sits in my lap, then?”

“Oh, my,” the old man said. “You’d have to ask her if that’s okay.”

“For the love of – _fine_.” Yoichi cleared his throat. “Jemima, can I _please_ have your seat?”

The old man bent over and conferred with his dog. The dachshund stared into space, oblivious.

“Jemima says that’s a swell idea!” the old man cried.

“Great.” Yoichi sat down and the old man gently placed the trembling dog in his lap. Yoichi felt a few drops of drool start to fall onto his leg. _That better be from the dog,_ he thought.

“Why, look how much she’s taken to you! You’re a natural!” the old man exclaimed.

Jemima stared into space.

“Uh huh.” _You’re lucky I like dogs, you old geezer,_ Yoichi thought. He caught one of the other passengers smirking at him. “What are _you_ staring at?” he demanded. The passenger quickly looked away.

“So, what brings you to the capital?” the old man asked. “Visiting someone special?”

Yoichi sighed again. So, he was a talker. Perfect. “You could say that,” he replied reluctantly.

The old man took that as an invitation to launch into a long, convoluted and boring story about how he’d met his late wife. Yoichi settled back and tried to tune out the noise. He guessed he now understood why Jemima always looked so vacant.

 _This trip better be worth it, Torch-head,_ Yoichi thought.

“So what time is Keitaro coming?” Hina Akiba asked.

Hiro groaned inwardly. “It’s not Keitaro, mom,” he said. “It’s Yoichi. Remember?”

Hina touched a hand to her forehead. “Oh, yes, you told me that. Sorry, dear. Some of these medications play havoc with my memory.”

Hiro smiled weakly. “I know, mom.”

“Who is Yoichi again? Is he a friend of yours from summer camp?”

“That’s right.”

“Is he a nice boy?”

“Ummm...” Hiro paused, uncertain. ‘Nice’ was not the word that immediately sprang to mind when describing Yoichi, but he didn’t want to lie to his mother. “He’s cool,” he finally said.

“And is he a _special_ friend?”

“Mommm!”

Hina chuckled. “Okay, okay, I won’t pry,” she said, smiling. “I’m just glad you’re making new friends. I worry about you, spending all your time looking after an old woman.”

“You’re not old! And I like looking after you.”

Hiro sat in a chair across the room from his mother’s hospital bed. He leaned over and very gently took her hand, careful not to disturb the IV line.

“Mom,” he said seriously, “are you _sure_ this is okay? I feel so guilty leaving you in here getting treatment while I’m out having fun.”

“Honey,” Hina said firmly, “listen to me. You’ve lost a lot of your childhood looking after your mom. I can’t give you those years back, but I can stop you from missing out on any more of your life. You take this weekend and you have _fun_ , okay? Mom’s orders.”

Hiro smiled. “Okay.”

Hina relaxed a little, feeling she’d got her point across. “I’ll be fine. The staff here take wonderful care of me. Besides, I’ll be out of it for most of the weekend, anyway. You know how tired I get after the treatments. So have a good time, and on Monday morning you can tell your old mom all about it, hmm? Well,” she chuckled, “maybe not _all_ of it.”

“Mom!”

Hina laughed softly. “You’re a good son, Hiro. I love you.”

Hiro reached across and hugged her. “I love you too, mom.”

Hina hugged him back, then released him. “Now, get going! Your guest will be arriving soon, won’t he?”

Hiro checked his watch. “Oh yeah! You’re right! I better get to the bus station! Later, mom! Call me if you need anything!” Hiro grabbed his backpack and headed for the door.

“Bye, honey! And tell Keitaro I said hi!”

Hiro paused, halfway through the door, a sad smile on his face.

“I will, mom,” he said.

Hiro made it to the station just in time. He came to a halt, sweating and panting, just as the bus pulled into the stop. While he got his breath back he watched the passengers disembark, scanning the procession of heads for Yoichi’s signature tufts of hair.

Finally, the last people got off and there was still no sign of Yoichi. Concerned, Hiro ran up to the driver.

“Um, excuse me, mister?” Hiro called. “Have you seen my friend? Tall guy, purple hair, kinda scary looking?”

The driver snickered. “He’s comin’. Just hold on, now.”

Hiro waited, impatiently hopping from foot to foot. Finally, Yoichi appeared.

He was linked arm in arm with some old guy. Yoichi’s other arm was holding the most ancient-looking dog Hiro had ever seen in his life. Despite the scowl on his face, Yoichi was taking very slow, patient steps, helping the old man down the steps of the bus. Hiro covered his mouth to hide his grin.

“Thank you kindly for your help, son,” the old man wheezed as Yoichi handed him the dog. “You’re a good boy. Here, for your trouble.” The old man handed him a couple of coins from his pocket.

“Uh, that’s okay,” Yoichi said. “Keep it. Really.”

“Well, if you’re sure. We’ll be off now. Say goodbye, Jemima!”

The old man waved the dog’s paw at Yoichi as he shuffled off. Yoichi half-heartedly waved back, then saw Hiro and stopped with a jolt.

“Aw, Wolfboy, did you make a new friend?” Hiro teased as he came over.

“Ugh. I don’t want to talk about it.”

Hiro sniffed and made a face. “Ew. And what’s that _smell_?!”

“I _said_ I don’t want to talk about it!”

Hiro chuckled. “Heh, okay. We can get you cleaned up at my place. Got your bags?”

Yoichi turned slightly to show the luggage he was carrying on his back.

“Jeez, Wolfboy! Are you here for the weekend, or are you moving in?”

“Blame Brokeback. I’m pretty sure he packed a dinghy in there.”

Hiro giggled. “You want me to carry something?”

“Nah. I got it.”

“Cool. It’s good to see you, by the way.”

“You too, Torch-head.” Yoichi paused, frowning at him. “You look different somehow. Did you change your hair or something?”

“Huh? No.” Hiro self-consciously touched his spiky orange hair with his fingertips. “It’s the same as always.”

“Hmm. Okay. Something looks off, though. Can’t put my finger on it.”

“We should go,” Hiro said briskly, eager to change the subject. “Come on.”

There was a momentary awkwardness. They experienced the same thing for the first few minutes each time they met up. Neither of them were quite sure what version of their relationship they were supposed to slide into quite yet.

 _What do I do?_ Hiro thought. _Kiss him? Hug him? It always feels so weird at first._

Eventually, of course, the weirdness would wear off and they’d end up bickering or screwing. The only thing to do was ride it out until that happened. It always did.

They started walking. A young couple walked past, hand in hand. _Is that what we’re supposed to be doing?_ Hiro thought. In all of his fantasies about his first real relationship, he’d pictured himself in those kinds of situations. But that had been with Keitaro. He couldn’t picture himself strolling along a beach, holding hands with Yoichi.

He could picture himself doing plenty of other things, though.

“So, how are the pups?” Hiro asked. “Natsumi looking after them while you’re here?”

Yoichi nodded. “They’re huge now,” he said. “Hunter could probably ride one of them like a pony.”

Hiro laughed.

“Keichi really looks like his mother, too,” Yoichi said proudly.

Hiro felt a momentary flicker of annoyance. Why _had_ Yoichi named one of the dogs after him and Keitaro? When pressed before, he’d claimed that he’d run out of pups and didn’t want to leave either himself or Keitaro out. Besides, Hiro had to admit, the dog slept about as much as both of his namesakes. He dismissed the thought.

“Think Natsumi will be able to handle them now they’re bigger?”

“Nope. They’ll run rings around him. But he owes us, remember?”

Hiro chuckled. “How could I forget?”

And just like that, the awkwardness dissolved. They walked the rest of the way to Hiro’s apartment talking animatedly, exchanging news on what had happened since they’d last met up. Hiro told Yoichi about his mother and some of the movies he’d seen lately. Yoichi told Hiro about the time Torch-head had snuck into the kitchen, eaten most of Aiden’s baking supplies, and thrown up in the mess hall.

“Guess that’s why they call it the mess hall,” Hiro quipped.

“Hah!” Yoichi laughed. “That’s what _I_ said!”

They arrived at Hiro’s apartment. Hiro unlocked the door and let them both inside.

“Welcome to Camp Hiro!” Hiro cried, turning on the lights with a flourish.

Yoichi looked around at the apartment. “Huh. It’s kinda small.”

“Yoichi!” Hiro cried. “That’s such a rude thing to say!”

“It is?”

“Yeah! You’re supposed to say it’s, like, cosy, or something.”

“Well, I’m _not_ saying that.”

“Gnn. It’s only me and my mom who live here. And she spends a lot of time at the hospital, so mostly it’s just me.” Hiro sounded sad as he said it out loud. “Our place back home is a lot nicer. You’ll see, once mom is back on her feet and we can move away from here again.”

Yoichi sniffed the air. “What smells good?”

“Oh! I was baking! I knew we’d probably be going out to try some of the places in the city for food, so I made a few snacks for when you arrived! I made some of those wolf cookies you like.”

“With the marshmallows?”

“Uh huh! Go dump your bags in the bedroom and I’ll get us some!”

Yoichi tried the nearest door. It opened into a room with a flowery, feminine motif. There was a sort of hospital bed set up in the middle of it. Bottles of pills and other medications were spread all over the bedside table.

“Not the one on the left, that’s my mom’s room!” Hiro called from the kitchen. “Ours is on the right!”

 _Ours?_ Yoichi thought. He opened the other door.

When he saw Hiro’s bedroom, he realised Hiro must have made an effort to tidy up the living room before he arrived. Compared to the bedroom, it was spotless. Hiro’s bed was unmade and there were clothes scattered across the floor, along with the occasional candy wrapper. The place smelled clean, but was still a bit of a mess. Yoichi found himself grinning. After living so long at Camp Buddy, with uptight freaks like Brokeback and Natsumi hassling him every time he dropped a sock, spending a few days with Hiro would be a relief.

He dropped his bags on the floor and made his way back into the living room. Hiro was waiting on the couch with a plate of cookies. Yoichi took one and sat down beside him, munching it.

“So, what do you wanna do first?” Hiro asked excitedly. “We could get lunch if you’re hungry. We could fire up my PX4, I have some of those games I was telling you about. Or we could check out the arcade first and play something there. Or we could just chill for a while if you’re tired from the trip.”

Yoichi wolfed his cookie and took another. “All that sounds good,” he said, “but first I want to get out of these clothes.”

Hiro’s eyebrows shot up.

“Not like that, you perv,” Yoichi said. “I’m covered in dog drool and old man stink, remember?”

“Oh! Right! Do you – do you want to have a shower, or something?”

“Nah,” Yoichi said, standing up. “I just wanna get these reeking clothes off me.”

Before Hiro could say anything else, Yoichi was pulling his shirt over his head. Hiro almost choked on a cookie to see Yoichi bare-chested, right there in his apartment. Despite all the things they’d done together back at camp, Hiro still hadn’t gotten used to the sight of Yoichi undressed.

Yoichi pulled off his pants, underwear, shoes and socks and sat down on the couch, breathing a sigh of relief. He put his feet up on the coffee table and folded his arms behind his head. “Ahhh. That’s better.”

Only then did he notice Hiro staring at him, completely frozen, a cookie held halfway to his mouth.

“What??” Yoichi demanded.

“Your butt’s on my couch,” Hiro said stupidly.

“Yeah. So? I’m hot and sweaty from being on that damn bus for so long!”

“Do – do you want a drink?” Hiro asked, still a little dazed. He was keeping his eyes rigidly focused on Yoichi’s face. If they slipped down to observe what was resting against the older boy’s bare thigh, Hiro knew he would lose all control.

“Sure. Got any lemon Fanta?”

“I do!”

Hiro scampered off to the kitchen, almost tripping over the coffee table. _Be cool, be cool,_ he told himself. _You’re acting like a total spaz. You’ve seen Wolfboy naked before! You’ve fucked Wolfboy naked before!_

 _But not in your apartment,_ another part of his mind pointed out.

Hiro grabbed a can from the fridge and poured it into a glass. He brought the drink out to Yoichi, who was stuffing cookies into his mouth with one hand and idly scratching his balls with another.

Hiro gulped.

“H-here’s your drink,” Hiro stammered, holding it out.

“Thanks.” Yoichi grabbed the glass and drained it in one go. Hiro watched, fascinated, as a bead of moisture fell from the glass and landed between Yoichi’s pecs. He followed it as it dribbled down the grooves between Yoichi’s abs, finally disappearing into his bellybutton.

Hiro’s mouth had never been so dry.

Yoichi belched, bringing Hiro to his senses as the older boy handed him back the glass.

“Y-you want another?”

“Nah, I’m good.”

“I-I think I’ll get one for myself. I’m a l-little thirsty.”

Yoichi snickered. “I can tell,” he said, giving Hiro a smirking sidelong look.

Hiro ran back into the kitchen and stuck his face into the fridge to cool it down. He held it there for a couple of minutes until rational thought began to return. Then he stood up, grabbing himself a drink, and closed the door.

He turned to find a naked Yoichi leaning against the door frame. His arms were folded across his chest, tensed biceps brushing up against his pecs, nipples peeking out over the edge of his wrists. He had an amused, confident look on his face.

“So,” Yoichi purred, his voice low, “you’ve finally got me to yourself. For the whole weekend. What are you going to do with me?”

Hiro seemed to have completely lost the power of speech. The only things he could feel were the ice-cold can of drink in his hand and the throbbing sensation between his legs.

Yoichi padded across the kitchen in his bare feet. Hiro could only stare, hypnotised, at the way Yoichi's dick swung from side to side with each step. It seemed to be slowly waking up, and was now pointing at him as though singling him out.

Yoichi loomed over Hiro, smirking down at him. Hiro’s senses were overwhelmed by the older boy’s scent, a wild mixture of sweat, deodorant and Yoichi’s own unique musk. Yoichi took the can of soda from Hiro’s lifeless fingers and set it on the counter.

Yoichi continued moving forward, backing Hiro up against the fridge. The older boy pressed his naked body against Hiro’s clothes. Hiro’s dick was pushed sideways from inside his pants by Yoichi’s thigh and he moaned involuntarily.

“I think this is the longest you’ve ever been quiet,” Yoichi purred. “But I don’t think it’s gonna last much longer.”

Yoichi put his hands under Hiro’s armpits and hoisted him up onto the counter. In the same motion he yanked down Hiro’s pants, slipping them off the younger boy’s skinny waist and pulling them down, underwear and all. Hiro felt his bare butt touching cool formica.

Yoichi grabbed the bottom of Hiro’s t-shirt and pulled it up over his head, stripping him bare from the ankles up. He paused a moment to take in the sight of Hiro’s body, eyes greedily drinking it in. Hiro’s dick was now standing straight up and brushing his bellybutton, almost as though it was saluting Yoichi’s.

Yoichi grinned up at Hiro, then bent down and engulfed his dick in one go.

Hiro arched his back and moaned, heels trembling against the cupboard doors as Yoichi ran an expert tongue up and down the length of his shaft. Looking down, he could see the muscles in Yoichi’s back and arms working as he braced himself against the counter, purple hair moving back and forth as he focused on Hiro’s crotch.

Hiro tried to stifle the moans that came up from his throat. “Y-yoichi!” he gasped. “The n-neighbours! The walls are really th-th- _thinnn!”_

Yoichi paused to smirk up at Hiro. “Then let’s give ‘em something to listen to.” He went back to work.

Hiro couldn’t take it any longer. He exploded inside Yoichi’s mouth, his shoulders jerking, a cry of pleasure escaping from his lips. His body relaxed, limp against the wall.

Yoichi stood, wiping Hiro’s cum from his mouth with the back of his hand. He swallowed and licked his lips. “Mmm. Tastes like marshmallow.”

Hiro chuckled, catching his breath. “I hope not. I think that would mean I have a medical condition.”

Yoichi helped Hiro down from the counter-top. Still a little shaky, Hiro was surprised when Yoichi suddenly whirled him around so his tummy was pressed against the formica. Hiro felt strong fingers in his back, pushing him down between the shoulder-blades, bending him over the counter-top. Then Yoichi was leaning over him too, hot breath in his ear.

“Okay,” Yoichi said. “My turn.”

“W-wait! Don’t – _gaah-haaaaaah!!”_

Hiro felt Yoichi’s dick slide into him at full throttle. He did his best to relax and ease the way, knowing it wouldn’t be enough. Yoichi kept on coming. Longer. Wider. Hiro’s pleasure spot overwhelmed his mind with sensations, obliterating all conscious thought.

Hiro drooled mindlessly against the kitchen counter as Yoichi moved inside him. In. Out. Back. Forward. The older boy’s hands were gripping his hips firmly, and Hiro heard him grunting with each thrust.

“F-fuck!” Yoichi gasped. “You’re so! F-fucking! _Tight_ , Torch-head!”

Hiro moaned wordlessly, his voice rising in volume with Yoichi’s thrusts.

There was a banging sound. It took Hiro’s pleasure-addled mind a second to realise it was coming from the apartment above, not his body.

“Keep it down down there!” came the muffled voice from the ceiling.

“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Hiro and Yoichi screamed as one.

Hiro knew he couldn’t take it much longer. From the sounds he was making, Wolfboy had to be pretty close, too.

“Y-Yoichi,” Hiro cried. “I’m almost there!”

Yoichi only grunted and continued thrusting. An eternity of bliss later, Hiro felt the older boy ejaculate inside him. That triggered Hiro’s own release. He felt Yoichi’s juices running down the back of his legs, while his own spurted up onto his belly and across the side of the cupboard door.

Hiro sagged against the counter-top, his body limp and lifeless. Only the weight of Yoichi pinned against his butt held him upright. He felt the older boy’s muscles brush his back, damp with sweat, as Yoichi held him for a second. Then he disengaged, leaving Hiro a spent, dripping mess, leaning against the kitchen counter. Yoichi’s hand patted Hiro’s ass with a faint slap before Hiro heard him pad back into the living room.

When he felt he could walk again, Hiro stood up. He almost tripped as he realised, despite being otherwise naked, his pants and underwear were still around his ankles. Hiro slipped off his shoes, stepped out of his clothes and walked naked into the living room.

Yoichi was munching contentedly on the last of the wolf cookies. Hiro sat heavily down beside him, exhausted, and breathed out. Yoichi passed him a cookie. He bit into it.

“Aw, man,” Hiro said after a moment’s chewing.

“What?” Yoichi asked.

“I only remembered. I _just_ cleaned in there!”

“Where _is_ this place, Torch-head? We’ve been walking for ages!”

“It’s not far! Come on!”

“My feet hurt, dammit.”  
“Stop whining! It’s just around the corner!”

Yoichi grumbled to himself under his breath as he followed Hiro through the crowd. The younger boy was weaving between pedestrians with his usual tireless energy, casting back looks over his shoulder and urging Yoichi to hurry up. Yoichi’s stomach growled another complaint.

“It’s just – here! Ta da!”

Yoichi came to a stop in front of the building Hiro was gesturing toward. It appeared to be a busy restaurant. A buff guy and a cute girl were standing out the front wearing Stetsons and skimpy cowboy-themed outfits.

“‘Red Meat Redemption’?” Yoichi said, reading the restaurant’s name aloud.

“It’s a barbecue place!” Hiro cried. “You’ll love it! I eat here at least once a month! Come on!” He raced off towards the entrance. Yoichi followed.

The closer he got, the more the smells coming from the place enticed him in. The scent of roasting meat wafted through the doors and out into the street. Yoichi felt his mouth watering.

“Howdy, partners!” the buff guy called as they approached. He was absurdly handsome, wearing a checked shirt that was unbuttoned almost to his navel. The outfit put Yoichi in mind of Brokeback’s costume at the crazy lady’s party last summer, which was all _kinds_ of confusing.

“Is this your first time here at our little old place?” the girl greeter asked.

“Not for me! But it is for my friend here!” Hiro cried.

“Well, all right! Welcome to Red Meat Redemption, the rootinest, tootinest barbecue joint in the whole wild west!”

“Uhh... okay?” Yoichi said.

“Now, first question! Cowboy or cowgirl?”

“Huh?” Yoichi asked.

“Cowboy, please!” Hiro cried, grinning.

“Sure thing, little partner!” the male greeter said. “Why don’t you fellas come with me?”

 _This is the lamest shit I ever saw,_ Yoichi almost said, but the combination of the smells from the kitchen and the excited look on Hiro’s face stopped him.

The greeter led them to a table for two, handed them some menus and told them a server would be with them shortly. The décor was Wild West-themed, with cowboy memorabilia covering the walls. Yoichi perused the menu. Each dish seemed to be named after an appalling pun based on a cowboy movie, but the pictures of the food made his mouth water.

“Ohhh, man,” Hiro said, poring over the menu, “I never know what to order. Everything looks so good, and I’m _starving._ ”

“You just ate a whole plate of cookies back at the apartment,” Yoichi pointed out.

“You ate most of them! Besides, that just woke my stomach up. Now I’m even hungrier.”

Their water approached. He was dressed in similar fashion to the greeter, but, being somewhat less hunky, wasn’t quite pulling it off the same way. The defeated expression on his face conveyed everything he felt about his job.

“Hi guys,” the waiter said in a bored voice. “Welcome to Red Meat Redemption.” He fetched a long-suffering sigh. “You’re not gonna make me do the accent, are you?”

“Um, no?” Hiro said. “Not if you don’t want to.”

“I really don’t. Would you like to hear the specials?”

“Oh! Yes, please!”

“ _Fine._ Our specials today are The Good, The Bad And The Omelette,” the waiter recited tonelessly. “That’s an omelette. We also have The Ham Who Shot Liberty Valence. That’s a hamburger. And as it’s Friday, we invite all of our customers to participate in the Carnivore Challenge.”

“Ooo! Yoichi! The Carnivore Challenge!” Hiro’s eyes were bright with excitement. “We gotta do that! We gotta!”

“What the hell is it?” Yoichi asked.

The waiter fetched another deep sigh, preparing to go through his usual spiel. “The Carnivore Challenge is a special event hosted each Friday here at Red Meat Redemption,” he intoned. “The challenge is for one or two players. The goal is to consume the entire platter of meat within one hour. If you succeed, your meal is free. If you give up, throw up or your time’s up, then you pay up.” The waiter cringed at the words while he was saying them. “I _hate_ this place,” he confided in a whisper. The boys ignored him.

“Tcha! That’s it? One measly platter? I could do that even without your help, Torch-head!”

“Nuh uh! You haven’t seen the amount of meat on it! It’s _huge_! Has anyone ever won before?” Hiro asked the waiter.

“Just once,” the waiter replied. He pointed at a photograph on the wall, beneath a banner saying ‘Hall of Fame’. The photograph showed an overweight man grinning proudly over an empty, grease-smeared silver platter. “Harold Butterfield. May he rest in peace.”

“He _died_?” Hiro asked.

“Yes. But it’s never been proven that participating in the challenge directly caused his death,” the waiter said. “Our lawyers are _very_ clear about that.”

“I dunno, Wolfboy,” Hiro said. “Maybe we shouldn’t risk it.”

“Ha! You chicken out if you want to, Torch-head, but I’m not passing up the chance for a free meal. Count me in,” he told the waiter.

Hiro chewed his lip for a moment before coming to a decision. “Fine, me too!” he said. “I can’t let you have all the fun, Wolfboy.”

“You better not take any of _my_ share,” Yoichi warned him. “I’m not walking out of here still hungry.”

The waiter sighed. “I’ll be right back. I need to get your waivers.” He picked up their menus and left.

“Wafers?” Yoichi asked. “Are they like an appetiser, or something?”

Hiro shrugged. “Don’t ask me,” he said.

When the waiter returned he slapped two forms down on the table and handed each of them a pen. “Please sign these,” he said, “indicating that you understand the risks involved in the Carnivore Challenge, and waive your right to sue Red Meat Redemption for any injury or death that may result from doing so. Also, please fill in the contact information for your next of kin.”

“Ummm...”

“Don’t fall for it, Torch-head,” Yoichi said confidently. “They’re just trying to scare us off.”

“Yeah, you’re right!” Hiro declared.

Yoichi filled out the form, signed it and handed it over. “Bring on the meat!” he cried.

“Yeah! Bring it on!”

The waiter took their forms, rolling his eyes. “Oookayyy. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

When the waiter left, Yoichi saw the other diners staring at him and Hiro. Some were whispering behind their hands and pointing. He thought he saw one of them cross himself.

“Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea,” Hiro said uneasily.

Yoichi was defiant. “Too late to back out now, Torch-head! Don’t worry. This’ll be a piece of cake!”

“Uggghhhhh..... Yoichi... I think I’m.... dying....”

“S-shut up,” Yoichi mumbled through a mouthful of meat. “Less talking, more eating! We’re running out of time!”

Hiro groaned and rubbed his swollen stomach. The orange-haired boy’s face was smeared with barbecue sauce. Somehow, some of it had gotten into his hair. He picked up a rib and tried to force it between his lips, only to let it drop back onto his plate.

“I can’t,” he moaned. “I give up. It’s too much! It’s impossible!”

Yoichi forced himself to swallow and took a drink of water to rinse out his mouth. “Stop whining! We can do this! We’re almost there!”

“Ughhh.... I feel sick....”

“Just unbutton your pants! That’ll make more room!”

“My pants button blew off half an hour ago!”

Yoichi was so full that it hurt to breathe, yet he refused to give in. For the first twenty minutes or so, the Carnivore Challenge had seemed like it was going to be easy. Hiro had been right, the food was _amazing_ , and Yoichi found himself inhaling it with gusto. Then his brain started to get the message that his stomach couldn’t take much more, and he’d noticed that despite his best efforts the pile of meat was barely diminished. He’d forced himself to go on, mindlessly chewing and swallowing food that no longer had any flavour.

There were ten minutes left on the clock and they were down to the last layer of ribs.

“Don’t make me come over there and force-feed you!” he snarled. “Come _on_ , Torch-head! We can win this!”

“I _can’t_ ,” Hiro wailed. “I’ll burst!”

“Dammit, Torch-head! You’re just gonna give up? Just like that?” Yoichi searched his mind for something inspiring to say. “What would Super Jirou do, huh? Would _he_ just quit?”

That seemed to get Hiro’s attention. “N-no...”

“Damn right he wouldn’t! He didn’t quit when he was fighting the Squid Men from Mollusca-7, did he?”

Hiro blinked at him. “H-how did you know that?” he asked. “Did you watch the show?”

“I watched a few episodes online,” Yoichi said, finishing one rib and starting on another. “You wouldn’t shut up about it, so I figured I should check it out. It’s not bad.”

Hiro’s face suddenly set itself into a look of determination. “You’re right! Super Jirou wouldn’t give up! And neither will I!” He grabbed two ribs at once and forced them into his mouth, gnawing on them in a frenzy.

 _I can’t believe that worked,_ Yoichi thought.

A crowd had begun to gather around them as the clock ticked down to the final few minutes. The looks on the spectators’ faces were a mixture of awe, amusement and disgust. Yoichi ignored them and carried on shovelling food into his mouth.

“One minute left, guys!” the greeter called. He and his cowgirl friend had come back inside to see what all the fuss was about, and in the process become their most enthusiastic cheerleaders.

Yoichi spat out a bone and shoved in two more ribs.

“Thirty seconds!”

He and Hiro reached for the same rib. They tussled for a second. Yoichi let Hiro have it and grabbed another.

“Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven! Six -”

Hiro swallowed.

Yoichi swallowed.

They both slammed their last picked-clean bones down onto the table. Then they stood up, raising their arms in victory.

“YEE HAW!” the cowboy greeter cried enthusiastically. “Folks, we have two winners! They completed the Carnivore Challenge! Let’s all give ‘em a hand!”

The spectators, staff and patrons alike, erupted in loud cheers and applause.

“We did it! Wolfboy, we did it!” Hiro cried.

“YES! I AM UNBEAT” - Yoichi belched - “ABLE!”

The cowboy took their photo. The cowgirl ran over to hug Yoichi. The assembled customers continued to applaud.

As the manager came over to congratulate them both, Hiro’s pants fell down.

Afterwards, Hiro and Yoichi were both too stuffed and too tired to do much other than stumble their way back to Hiro’s apartment and take a nap.

Hiro woke up three hours later on his bed. Yoichi was spooning him, snoring like a buzz-saw in his ear. He could feel the older boy’s dick pressed against his butt. Hiro squirmed his buttocks against Yoichi’s groin. He felt Yoichi’s dick begin to stiffen and heard him muttering in his sleep, yet he didn’t wake up. Hiro smiled to himself. He could happily stay like this for days, he realised.

His phone began to vibrate on the bedside table.

Groaning, Hiro reached across and grabbed it, pulling away from Yoichi. He would’ve preferred to ignore it, but with his mom’s health that was never an option. He unlocked the screen and saw it was a text message. He felt a moment of relief, realising it wasn’t the hospital calling with anything urgent. Then he saw who the message was from.

It was from Keitaro.

Hiro’s heart felt like it stopped beating. Time seemed to freeze as he read and reread the name on the screen.

He still hadn’t actually opened the message.

Hiro’s stomach complained, and he somehow didn’t think it was entirely because of the Carnivore Challenge.

He got out of bed, moving carefully so as not to waken Yoichi, and took his phone into the living room. His heart seemed to have restarted, and was making up for lost time by pounding in his chest.

He set the phone down on the coffee table and stared at it like it was a snake poised to strike.

His thoughts were in total confusion.

Why was Keitaro texting him?

Why _now_ , after months of silence?

Why now – when everything was going so well?

Hiro thought back to the last conversation they’d had on the final day of camp. The wild accusations that had come flying out of Hiro’s mouth, paranoid fears about Keitaro being secretly attracted to Natsumi, or Yoichi, or even Hunter. Knowing he was driving a wedge between them with his insecurities, yet be unable to stop himself. Keitaro just standing there and taking it, quiet and submissive as ever, letting Hiro spew more and more venom without even trying to defend himself. Then, once Hiro had finally given vent to his spleen, quietly and with tears in his eyes Keitaro had said that he thought they should give each other some space for a while.

That had been the last time they’d talked.

Hiro had begged and pleaded, but to no avail. He’d joked and made light of his behaviour, but Keitaro was unconvinced. From that moment a wall had risen between them. Hiro had maintained a false sense of cheerfulness right up until they’d left camp, promising to keep in touch with Keitaro. His texts and calls had gone unanswered. Finally, after a few weeks of total silence from Keitaro, Hiro had got the message. It was over.

He’d blown it.

So after wallowing in self pity for a while, he’d picked himself up and focused his attention back where it should have been in the first place: on his mom. There was a lot to arrange, both for their move to the capital and for her daily care after that. Soon more weeks went by and the pain began to fade to a dull, background throb.

Then he’d reconnected with Yoichi. They’d become friends. Then they’d started getting physical with each other. Now they were – what? Fuck buddies? Even if that was all they were, it had almost completely taken Hiro’s mind off Keitaro. The pain was still there, pulsing under the surface, ready to flare up anytime someone or something reminded Hiro of his former best friend. But he found he could live with it. He found there were other things to look forward to. He’d started to believe he was beginning to heal.

And now this damn text message.

 _Delete it,_ he told himself. _Whatever it is, it can’t do you any good. Focus on the future. Focus on Yoichi. Don’t fall back into the pit of your feelings for Keitaro. You only just climbed out._

His thumb hovered over the keys, passing hesitantly between ‘read’ and ‘delete’.

“You got any cookies left?”

“GAH!” Hiro jumped, startled. His phone went flying out of his hands and landed behind the couch.

Yoichi was standing in the bedroom doorway, yawning. “Jeez, Torch-head, what’s got into you?” he asked.

“Y-you startled me!” Hiro cried, heart racing. “My _god_ , Wolfboy! Don’t sneak up on me like that!”

Yoichi stared at him, unimpressed. “I’m standing right in front of you, doofus,” he said.

Hiro took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself. He got up to retrieve his phone. “Sorry, I was just, uh – texting my mom,” he lied. _Ugh! Why did I say that?_ he asked himself.

Yoichi yawned again and scratched himself. “She okay?” he asked.

“Y-yeah, she’s fine. Just checking in on me. And, uh, no. You finished the cookies earlier, remember?” Hiro picked up his phone and checked it wasn’t damaged. The message was still on-screen. He put it into sleep mode and shoved it into his pocket. “Wait,” he said, realising. “You’re _still_ hungry?! After all that food we ate?”

Yoichi shrugged. “I could use a snack. Something sweet.”

Hiro chuckled despite himself. “Check the cupboard. There might be some candy bars left.”

Yoichi walked into the kitchen. “You want one?” he called.

“Uh, yeah,” Hiro said, wondering how he could sneak off to get a look at his phone. “Sure.”

He heard Yoichi opening cupboard doors and slamming them before he returned to the living room.

“Okay, I give up,” Yoichi said, throwing himself down on the couch. “You go find them.”

“Gnnnn, Wolfboy,” Hiro muttered, heading into the kitchen. “Can’t you just sniff ‘em out?”

“Too many other smells in that kitchen,” Yoichi called from the living room. “Remember?”

Hiro felt himself blush at the allusion to the morning’s activities. _I can’t believe we did that in the kitchen,_ he thought. _What would my mom think!_

_What would Keitaro think?_

He shoved the thought away. He began opening cupboards, checking for any leftover snacks.

“Looks like we’re out of luck, Wolfboy,” Hiro called. “I don’t see anything here apart from -” He stopped mid-sentence.

After a moment, Yoichi called: “Apart from what? Is it cake? I could eat some cake.”

Hiro continued staring into the cupboard. _Oh no,_ he thought. _How could I be so stupid?_

“Torch-head?” Yoichi asked, his voice getting closer as he came into the kitchen. “What the hell’s taking so – huh? What’s wrong?”

Hiro was holding up a bottle of pills in his hand, his face anguished. “These are my mom’s!” he cried. “She needs them! She’s supposed to take them every night before bed! I was supposed to leave them with her when I took her into the hospital this morning! I forgot!” He was hitting himself on the hide of the head in frustration. “Rrrrgh! I can’t believe I _forgot_! I’m so _stupid!”_

“Whoa, whoa, Torch-head, calm down!” Yoichi said, coming forward. He grabbed Hiro’s hands and held them down to stop him from continuing to abuse himself. “She’s in the hospital, remember? They’ve got all kinds of pills in there.”

“But what if they don’t have these?!” Hiro cried, tears in his eyes. “She might forget to tell them what she needs! She does that sometimes! I can’t _believe_ I _forgot!_ I was so busy thinking about you coming I forgot about my own _mom_!”

“Dude, _calm down._ It’s only six o’clock. We can still take them over to her. It’s not a big deal, so stop beating yourself up, okay?”

Hiro nodded, swallowing, coming to his senses. He wiped away some of the tears that threatened to spill over his lashes. “Right. Okay. Sorry. You’re right. I can run them over to her now. I just can’t believe I _forgot_.”

“Hey, go easy on yourself, man,” Yoichi said kindly. “You can’t remember everything.”

Hiro looked at him seriously. “But I _do_ have to remember. Don’t you get it? I have to remember _everything._ There isn’t anyone else.”

Yoichi had no answer for that. He watched Hiro dash off to the bedroom to grab his shoes and backpack.

“Will you be okay here on your own for a bit?” Hiro called. “You can play my PX4 if you’re bored.”

“Why can’t I come with you?” Yoichi asked.

That stopped Hiro in his tracks. “Huh,” he said. “I guess I didn’t think you’d want to. You don’t have to.”

“I know that.”

“So … uh … are you coming?”

“Unless you don’t want your mom to meet me,” Yoichi said.

“What? No. Why would I care about that?”

“Well, she might not approve, right?”

“Why wouldn’t she?” Hiro kept his tone superficially light, making it clear he had been worried about the exact same thing and was trying to hide it.

“Big bad wolf, come to steal her precious wittle boy,” Yoichi said with a teasing smirk.

“Yoichi!”

“Think she’d want to know what we got up to in the kitchen earlier?”

“ _Yoichi!”_

Yoichi burst out laughing. “I’m just fuckin’ with ya, Torch-head. Lemme get my shoes. Maybe if I make nice she’ll send me some cookies when she gets out of hospital.”

They arrived at the hospital within an hour. Hiro breathlessly explained to the nurse at the desk what the issue was, though he had to slow down and repeat himself a few times before anyone could understand him. Yoichi watched the whole thing from a distance, uncomfortable in the sterile surroundings. The hospital building smelled of sickness and disinfectant. He tried not to let his discomfort show, wanting to appear supportive.

The nurse took them both to Hina’s room, but Hiro’s mother wasn’t inside. Hiro began to panic until the nurse explained she’d probably just been taken into the hospital garden by one of the staff to get some fresh air. Yoichi agreed to wait on a chair outside the room while Hiro went off with the nurse to look for his mother.

Bored and wanting to take his mind off where he was, Yoichi pulled his phone out of his pocket. A bunch of texts had come through.

Natsumi had sent: [yoichi! help! pups won’t listen to me! chewing all the furniture! peeing on everything! can you come back sooner?]

Yoichi replied: [you’re doing great. back monday]

There was a text from Brokeback. It read: [how are you? is everything ok? having fun? if you’ve been kidnapped the code word is banana, ok?]

Yoichi sent back: [everything’s fine. stop worrying about me. start worrying about natsumi. check on him and pups ok?]

Yoichi was about to check if his phone had any games when a voice said: “Excuse me, young man, but do I know you?”

Yoichi looked up from his phone. A kind-looking woman in a wheelchair was in front of him, being pushed by a handsome nurse. She was looking at him closely, as though trying to place him.

“Your face looks very familiar,” she said. “Are you a friend of my son’s?”

The penny dropped. Yoichi recognised her face from some of the pictures in Hiro’s apartment.

“Uh, yeah, I guess,” he said, suddenly feeling awkward. “I mean, yeah, I am. You’re Hiro’s mom, uh, right?”

Hina’s face lit up at the mention of her son’s name. “You do know Hiro! You must be one of his friends from camp. I recognise your face from the pictures he showed me, but I can’t quite place the name. My memory’s a bit unreliable these days, I’m afraid. Let’s see, now - tall, purple hair, well-built … Natsumi?”

Yoichi felt himself blushing at her description. “Yoichi,” he corrected.

“Right! Of course! I remember, now. Wolfboy!” she cried, pointing at him.

Yoichi chuckled, embarrassed. “That’s me. Uh. Nice to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you. From Torch-huh – I mean, uh, from your son.”

Hina’s eyes were sparkling with mischief. “I’ve heard quite a lot about you as well, dear,” she said.

 _What the hell does that mean?_ Yoichi wondered.

“Mom!”

They turned to see Hiro running towards them. He flung himself at his mother’s wheelchair and hugged her.

“Mom! I forgot your pills! I’m so sorry! But I brought them! They’re here, look!”

“Honey, honey, it’s okay,” Hina said soothingly. “They have everything I need right here. You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m fine, see?”

“Y-yeah, I see,” Hiro said shakily. “I’m sorry. I was just so worried.”

Hina reached up and touched her son’s face. There was so much love and hurt in her eyes that Yoichi had to look away. “Honey, I’m _fine_ ,” she said softly. “Remember what I told you? Don’t worry about me this weekend. Just for once. Go and have some fun with your friend here.”

Hiro looked down. “I know, mom. I just panicked. But we are having fun, I promise.”

“Mrs Akiba?” the nurse said. “We really should get you back into bed, now. You need to rest.”  
“Yes, of course,” Hina said. “You boys run along, okay? Enjoy your weekend together.”

Hiro kissed his mom’s cheek. “We will. Thanks, mom.”

The nurse wheeled Hina past Yoichi. “It was nice finally meeting you, Wolfboy,” she said playfully as she was wheeled into her room.

“Uh, you too, Hiro’s mom,” Yoichi stammered awkwardly. He heard her tinkling laugh as the door closed.

Hiro breathed a huge sigh of relief. “Whew. Man. Sorry for freaking out like that,” he said.

Yoichi waved it away. “Don’t worry about it. Your mom’s cool.”

Hiro grinned. “She’s the best. So! What should we do now? It’s still early.”

“Hmmm,” Yoichi said thoughtfully. “You know what?”

“What?”

“I could really go for some barbecue.”

Hiro burst out laughing.


	2. You Must Be This Tall to Ride

Hiro pressed read.

The message said: [can we talk?]

That was it.

Hiro slumped against the wall of the corridor outside his apartment. He was partly relieved, partly annoyed. On the one hand, hearing that Keitaro still wanted to speak to him was good, wasn’t it? Still, he’d expected something more significant for their first communication in months.

What the hell was he supposed to do now?

He read and re-read those three words over and over again. He didn’t have long, he knew. He’d only popped out for a few seconds to take out the garbage, leaving Yoichi back in his apartment. Too long and Wolfboy would start to wonder where he was.

Part of him wanted to delete the message and forget he’d ever received it. Things were going so well with Yoichi, his feelings for Keitaro would only confuse things.

Another part of him – the part that had been in love with Keitaro since he was old enough to know what the word meant – was outraged at the very idea.

_He was your best friend,_ Hiro told himself. _Isn’t it worth trying to salvage that, at least? You don’t have to fall for him again._

He knew that was a lie, but he started typing anyway.

[oh man it’s so good to hear from you] he sent. [of course i want to talk. can we stick to text, tho? kinda busy atm] The last thing he wanted was for Yoichi to overhear their conversation.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!” Yoichi’s voice screamed from inside the apartment, startling him. “THIS IS _BULLSHIT!”_

Hiro shook his head and went back inside.

Yoichi was sitting on the couch in his underwear, PX4 controller in one hand, gesticulating wildly at the TV screen. Two bare-chested, muscular men were on-screen. One of them was pummelling the other with an elaborate series of martial arts moves.

“He still kicking your ass?” Hiro asked, smiling.

“He’s a fucking _cheater!”_ Yoichi snarled.

Hiro laughed. “Don’t be a sore loser, Wolfboy. Seto’s really good at _Shirtless Warriors._ He plays it all the time.”

They watched as Seto’s character grabbed Yoichi’s, threw him into the air and performed an aerial combo that kept him bouncing up and down like a football.

“Look at this crap! How am I supposed to counter that?!” Yoichi cried.

“You need to interrupt his combo!”

“How do I do that??”

“Press trapezoid! Now!”

“Which one’s trapezoid?!”

“The one with the – aw, man! Too late. It’s over.”

“Fuck!”

Yoichi’s character landed in the dirt, got up and stood there, dazed. The game’s announcer bellowed “FINISH HIM!” through the speakers.

“What the hell? I can’t even control it now!” Yoichi said.

“Yeah, he beat you. Now he gets to humiliate you.”

Seto’s character ducked, stood up, moved backwards and forwards as Seto input the commands. Once it was done, Seto’s character pulled down his pants, exposing his dick. He grabbed Yoichi’s character and forced his face into Seto’s character’s crotch. The game then zoomed in on a close up of Yoichi’s character giving Seto’s character a blow job.

“LIU CAGE WINS!” the announcer bellowed once Seto’s character had cum. “FLAWLESS VICTORY!”

“What the _hell_?!” Yoichi cried. “This game sucks! GAH!” He stood up and raised the controller, about to throw it at the TV screen.

“YOICHI! _Those are expensive!”_ Hiro cried.

Yoichi managed to get himself under control. He gently set the PX4 controller down on the couch, then kicked one of the cushions across the room with a scream of rage.

A message from Seto came up on the screen. It simply said: [e z]

“This is crap! If we were in a real fight, I’d kick Tech Geek’s ass!” Yoichi yelled, kicking the cushion again.

“Uh huh, sure you would, big guy,” Hiro said, reaching across to switch off the PX4. “Maybe no more video games for you, hmm?”

Yoichi took a deep breath and threw himself down onto the couch. “Video games are lame,” he said sulkily. “They’re for losers.”

Hiro chuckled. “Jeez. Git gud, noob.”

“What?!”

Hiro giggled. “Nothing. Never mind. You want some breakfast?”

Yoichi grunted grumpily.

“Was that a yes-grunt or a no-grunt?”

“It was a make-me-some-fucking-eggs-or-I’ll-kick-your-ass grunt.”

Hiro laughed. “Yeesh! Okay, okay. I’ll go get started. Maybe you should watch some cartoons and try to calm down.”

“I am fucking calm!”

“I can see that,” Hiro said, snickering. He went into the kitchen and started getting breakfast ready. As he was cracking some eggs into the pan, his phone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out.

Another message from Keitaro.

[i’m so sorry for what happened between us at camp, hiro] it read. [i wish it could’ve ended differently]

[YOU’RE sorry?!] Hiro sent back, typing furiously. [dude! no! it was all my fault! i was acting like a crazy person. i’m so so so sorry, keitaro.]

There was a long pause. Hiro started to wonder if that was it. Then came Keitaro’s reply: [we were both at fault. i wasn’t very good at expressing my feelings]

[and i was way too good at expressing my crazy jealousy] Hiro sent back.

[hehe ok true]

[pls say you forgive me, keitaro. i promise i’ll never act like that again]

[of course i do! if i can forgive taiga, i can forgive YOU. you’re my best friend!]

Hiro felt a lump in his throat. [i’m so glad you still consider me that] he replied. [i was so worried you never wanted to speak to me again]

The […] as Keitaro typed his reply seemed to last an eternity. Finally, a response came through.

[hiro i’m sorry for being silent for so long. i just really needed to take some time to work through my feelings. everything was so confusing back at camp. when i found out you liked me as more than a friend, i didn’t know what to do. i didn’t want to risk our friendship. i panicked. i froze. and i ended up losing you as a friend anyway.]

Hiro was about to reply, but […] appeared to signify there was more.

[i have to ask … what you said at camp … do you still feel the same way?] Keitaro sent.

Hiro’s fingers hovered over the keys.

_Did_ he still feel the same way?

“Hey, Torch-head!” Yoichi called from the living room. “Something’s burning in there!”

“Huh? Oh, god!”

Distracted by the texts, Hiro had failed to notice the frying pan starting to smoke. He grabbed it off the burner and dumped the spoiled contents into the trash.

“That better not be my breakfast!” Yoichi called.

“Don’t worry! I have more!” Hiro replied.

Keeping a closer eye on the eggs this time, Hiro considered Keitaro’s question. His mind was spinning. What was he supposed to say? “Actually, Keitaro, I’m boinking Wolfboy now. It’s early days but I really like him. And I think he likes me. At least, as far as you can tell whether Yoichi likes anyone. So no, I’m not in love with you any more.”

This was _Keitaro_ he was talking about.

But if he said yes, if he admitted that Keitaro would always have a place in his heart – what then? What did that mean for Yoichi?

And what kind of person would send a text like that while Wolfboy sat in the living room, oblivious?

[i can’t answer that now] he sent back. [i’m sorry. i need time to think]

[i understand. take all the time you need] Keitaro sent. [i’ll wait]

And then, sending his heart all a-flutter, Keitaro added: [xxx]

Putting his phone back into his pocket, Hiro tried to focus on breakfast. As always, the act of cooking soothed his nerves. His conscious mind finally shut up, letting his body go through the tasks of heating, seasoning, tasting and serving. By the time breakfast was ready he felt more composed, ready to face Yoichi again.

“Wolfboy! Food’s up!” he called. “Come and get it!”

“Finally! I’m starving!” Yoichi appeared, grabbed a plate and started wolfing down bacon and eggs with his fingers before he’d even sat back down. Hiro joined him on the couch.

“Slow down, man. You’ll choke.”

Yoichi finished eating and licked his plate. “You gonna eat that?” he asked.

“Yes!”

“Tch.”

Hiro sighed. “Here,” he said, and tossed Yoichi a piece of bacon.

Yoichi caught it in his mouth.

“Good boy!”

“Shut up, Torch-head,” Yoichi said, chewing.

Hiro finished his own breakfast as Yoichi flicked through TV channels. It didn’t take him much longer than Wolfboy to gobble it down.

“So, what’re we doing today?” Yoichi asked. “We could just stay inside and screw.”

“Uh, yeah, we could,” Hiro said, chuckling. “But I was thinking we could go to Funtopia.”

“Huh? What’s that? Sounds lame.”

“It’s _awesome_. It’s a carnival, amusement park thing. They have rides, games, and lots of great food. It’s really close, too. We can take the subway there.”

“Still sounds lame. I’d rather just stay here.”

“Aww, c’mon, Wolfboy! It’ll be fun, I promise! We can still screw around _afterwards._ ”

Yoichi gave it some thought. “Fine,” he said at last. “But it better not suck.”

“Woohoo! I’m gonna go get ready! You wanna have a shower first?”

Yoichi raised his arm and sniffed his left pit. “Nah. I’m good.”

Hiro sighed. “Wolfboy, you are _not_ good. You stink. Get in the shower.”

“I had a shower _yesterday!”_

“And you need one today, too! Jeez, for someone with such a good sense of smell, you’re really nose-blind when it comes to your own body.”  
“God! Fine! You’re worse than Mr Perfect.” Yoichi stood up and stalked off to the bathroom.

“So even the _dog_ is nagging you to bathe more?!” Hiro called after him.

“You know I meant Natsumi! Gah! Shut up, Torch-head!”

Hiro snickered to himself as he heard the water start running.

Then he had an idea.

Setting down his plate, he scampered toward the bathroom, pulling off his clothes as he went until he was naked.

Steam billowed through the door as he opened it. Yoichi was standing in the shower cubicle, also naked. He scowled when he saw Hiro.

“I’m doing it, Torch-head! God! You don’t have to check up on me!”

“I just wanna make sure you’re doing it right, Wolfboy,” Hiro giggled. “I know how much dogs hate baths.” He opened the shower door and stepped inside, closing it behind him.

“What the hell?! There isn’t enough room for two of us in here. Even for a squirt like you.”

Hiro stepped closer, putting his hands on Yoichi’s pecs and pushing him back up against the wall. He pressed forward until he could feel his own flat stomach touching Yoichi’s rock hard abs.

“Then we’ll just have to stand really close together, heheheh,” Hiro said. He reached past Yoichi, grabbing the bottle of shower gel. He poured some onto his hands.

“W-what-” Yoichi started. Then he moaned as Hiro rubbed his hands over his body, soaping shower gel across his abs, his chest, his arms. Then down to his buttocks and, finally, his rapidly stiffening cock.

“Don’t get _too_ excited, Wolfboy,” Hiro said. “Or there _really_ won’t be enough room in here.”

Yoichi moaned in pleasure, relaxing as the hot water and Hiro’s hands started to soothe him. Hiro continued to lather the older boy up, feeling his own cock start to harden as his fingers explored every glorious inch of Yoichi’s body.

Hiro’s hands continued to move south, flowing down over Yoichi’s thick thighs and bulging calves. He made sure not to forget Yoichi’s feet, either. Yoichi obediently raised one foot after the other, groaning deeply as Hiro knelt down and worked his fingers between his toes.

Once he’d finished that, Hiro looked up and realised Yoichi’s erect penis was about to poke him in the eye. He grabbed it, feeling its unbelievable thickness in both of his hands, and redirected it toward his mouth.

He licked the tip of Yoichi’s cock, tasting salt mixed with water and a faint hint of fruity shower gel. Yoichi moaned again as Hiro slid his tongue up and down Yoichi’s penis. He took as much of it as he could fit into his mouth and worked his lips and tongue around it. He grazed the tip of Yoichi’s cock with his teeth, ever so gently, and Yoichi grunted with pleasure.

_Wolfboy always likes that,_ Hiro thought.

As the water splashed down on his face, Hiro continued to work Yoichi’s cock in his mouth while his fingers explored the rest of the boy’s body. His hands crept their way over Yoichi’s hips, around his amazingly firm buttocks and towards the cleft between them. They were just about to feel their way inside when Yoichi’s hand grabbed Hiro’s firmly and Hiro looked up to see Yoichi’s violet eyes glaring down at him.

Hiro manipulated Yoichi’s dick with his tongue. A spasm of pleasure rocked through Wolfboy’s body, breaking their eye contact. While he was distracted, Hiro slipped his fingers between Yoichi’s buttocks and sought out his pleasure spot.

“Fffff _uuuuuuck,_ ” Yoichi moaned as Hiro worked Yoichi’s pleasure spot with his fingers and his cock with his tongue. Hiro slurped greedily at Yoichi’s cock, feeling like he was drowning between the water pouring over his head and the throbbing penis in his mouth.

_What a way to die,_ he thought.

Hiro could feel Yoichi starting to tremble as his climax approached. His mouth was filled with pre-cum and Yoichi’s buttocks were clamped tight around his fingers. At the perfect moment, Hiro grazed Yoichi’s cock lightly with his teeth again.

Yoichi’s buttocks clenched and his dick shot forward, blocking off Hiro’s airway and filling his throat with semen as he came. Hiro coughed and spluttered, spitting out Yoichi’s dick as the water from the shower washed the salty taste from his mouth.

Getting his breath back, he grinned up at Yoichi, who was leaning back against the wall of the shower cubicle.

“Okay,” Yoichi said, panting. “You win, Torch-head. Maybe showers aren’t so bad after all.”

“So what ride d’you wanna go on first?” Hiro asked excitedly.

Yoichi looked around at Funtopia. They were standing near the entrance, having just arrived less than a minute ago. The whole park was laid out before them: stalls selling food and tents with games spread out between the larger rides.

“None of them? This all looks kinda lame, Torch-head.”

“It’s not lame! It’s awesome!” Hiro cried, offended. “Oh! Oh! I know what we should start with! Gravity Well!”

“Huh?”

“It’s the biggest roller-coaster in the region! You’ll love it! C’mon!”

Hiro scampered off and Yoichi followed reluctantly. As they got closer, Yoichi realised that what he’d originally taken for some scaffolding was actually the skeleton of a roller-coaster track. It was _enormous_. Yoichi’s eyes followed it up, up and further up, until the twisting, bending tracks seemed to disappear into the clouds. He felt his knees weaken slightly.

The sign proclaimed: GRAVITY WELL – KISS EARTH’S ORBIT GOODBYE!

Hiro was excitedly dancing from foot to foot. “Isn’t it awesome?! Last time I was here, I rode it so many times I forgot how to walk for like an hour!”

Yoichi started to feel a little light-headed.

“And I heard they originally used it to train astronauts, but the astronauts couldn’t handle it!”

“Uh ...”

“And at least three people have been killed on it by low-flying geese!”

“Torch-head ...”

“Huh?” Hiro stopped, realising Yoichi was no longer following him. “What’s wrong?”

“I dunno about this,” Yoichi said. He cleared his throat and tried to speak more firmly. “It, uh, looks kinda boring.”

“Boring?! It’s terrifying!” Hiro cried.

“Well, the line is really long! I don’t wanna waste all day queueing!”

Hiro glanced over at the line and frowned. “There’s like five people waiting. That’s not even a full coaster! And it’s still early! If we don’t go now, later on it really _will_ be busy.”

Yoichi cast his eyes around desperately. “The sign! See? It says you have to be this tall to ride!”

Hiro scampered over and stood beside the cardboard cut-out. The cut-out’s hand was held up an inch or two below his head. “I’m tall enough! See?”

“Yeah, but I’m not!”

“Wolfboy. You’re taller than I am.”

“Yeah, but the sign says you have to be _this_ tall,” Yoichi insisted, holding his hand up to his own shoulder. “I’m taller. So I can’t go on the ride.”

Hiro sighed. “Wolfboy, that’s not how it works. What’s really going on here?”

“N-nothing! What do you mean?”

Comprehension dawned on Hiro’s face. “Ohhhh. _I_ see what’s happening.”

“Gah! It just looks boring!” Yoichi cried, sweat breaking out on his forehead.

“No no, I see what’s going on here. And it’s my fault,” Hiro said.

“It is?”

“Yeah. All this time I’ve been calling you ‘Wolfboy’. When I should’ve been calling you _‘Chicken_ boy’.”

“What!”

“Bawk bawk bawk!”

“Hiro!”

“Bawwwwwk bawk bawk bawk!”

“God dammit, Torch-head!” Yoichi snarled.

Hiro began strutting around, flapping his elbows, pitching his head backwards and forwards and making elaborate clucking sounds. “Bawk! Bawk! Bawk bawk bawk bawk bawwwk!”

“I’m not scared!”

“Bawk bawk bawk bawk!”

“Will you stop acting like an idiot?! People are looking at us!”

“BAWWWWWK!”

“I swear I’ll kick your ass!”

_“Cock-a-doodle-doooooo!”_

“GAH! Fine! I’ll go on the dumb ride, just shut the hell up!”

“Woohoo!” Hiro cried, instantly dropping his act. He grabbed Yoichi’s hand and yanked him toward the line. “Let’s go! Come on!”

They joined the line. After a few minutes, the coaster came to a stop and the last group of riders departed. Some looked excited and happy. A few looked a little green. One was completely white, covered in sweat, and walking stiffly, like he’d just escaped from a car wreck.

“Ah, don’t worry about it,” Hiro said, seeing Yoichi observe this. “After the fifth loop-de-loop, you forget which way is up and down anyway!”

Yoichi whimpered a little in the back of his throat.

They took their seats in the coaster. Hiro and Yoichi were strapped in, side by side.

“C’mon! Where’s my big bad wolf, huh?” Hiro teased.

“Wolves stay on the ground!” Yoichi insisted. “They don’t fly through the fucking air, Torch-head.”

“Well, neither do chickens,” Hiro pointed out. “Ow! Hey, that hurts!”

Yoichi had grabbed Hiro’s hand. He was sitting rigidly in the seat, eyes staring forward, wide and terrified.

“Seriously, Wolfboy! You’re breaking my fingers! Owwwww!”

Hiro pulled his hand free from Yoichi’s grip. Yoichi grasped the arm-rests of the coaster, instead.

“I wanna get off,” Yoichi whispered.

Hiro finally seemed to realise just how frightened Yoichi was. He patted Yoichi’s bicep comfortingly. “Don’t worry, man, once the ride starts you’ll enjoy it.”

“I wanna get _off_!”

The ride attendant appeared at their side. “Everything okay folks?” he asked.

“I wanna get off!”

Hiro chuckled. “My friend here is just a little anxious about the ride.”

“I’m not anxious! I wanna get off this fucking thing!”

“Ah, don’t worry,” the attendant said. “We see that kind of thing all the time around here. And there’s always one thing that reassures them.”

“T-there is? What?” Yoichi asked.

The attendant stepped backwards.

“This,” he said, and pulled the lever to start the ride.

“Are you feeling all right?”

“I’m _fine._ ”

“You don’t look fine. You’re sitting on the ground with your head in your hands, Yoichi.”

“That’s just until everything stops spinning. Shut _up._ I’m fine!”

Hiro giggled. “Maybe you should stick to the tea cup ride in future.”

“I swear, if I could stand up right now I would punch you, Torch-head.”

Hiro sat down on the ground beside Yoichi. He reached across and rubbed the older boy’s back soothingly.

“Aw, I’m sorry I made you go on it. I thought you’d like it once it got going. There’s an amazing view from the top of the tracks. Pity you had your eyes closed the whole time.”

“I did not!” Yoichi snarled.

“Uh, yeah, you did. The guy handed me this once you staggered away.” Hiro produced a photograph. It showed him and Yoichi on the roller-coaster. Hiro was cheering excitedly. Yoichi’s eyes were closed tight and he was biting his lip.

“I blinked,” Yoichi insisted.

Hiro giggled. “Sure you did. Feeling any better yet? There’s still so much more to explore!”

Yoichi groaned and got to his feet. He was a little unsteady at first, but regained his balance. “No more stupid roller-coasters, okay?”

“’Kay. We’ll do something more chill next. Hmmm, how about ...” Hiro looked around the park, scanning for the next activity. “Oh! Hey! What about that?”

Yoichi followed where Hiro was pointing. “A freak show, huh?” he said, interested. “Now you’re talking!”

“This is lame.”

“Don’t I usually say that?” Yoichi asked.

“Yeah, but this time I said it for you. This _sucks_ ,” Hiro said.

Yoichi found it hard to disagree. They sign outside the tent had promised “wonders you will never believe, sights so strange they will burn themselves into your memory and shake you to your very soul”.

“‘Behold, the hideous Siamese Turtle’, nature’s cruellest mistake,” Hiro said, reading from the sign in front of the tank.

“Isn’t that just two turtles taped together?”

Hiro sighed. “Yeah. It seems kinda cruel, one of them stuck on the other’s shell like that.”

“This one is worse,” Yoichi said, pointing into another tank he was standing in front of.

“What is it?” Hiro asked, coming over to join him.

“It says it’s a ‘mimic lizard’.”

“But it’s just an old stick!”

“It says it can mimic anything. Even a stick.”  
Hiro tapped the glass. “It _is_ a stick. It’s not even moving! I can’t believe we paid to get in here.”

“Oh my god!” Yoichi cried.

“What?”

“Jesus! Look at this thing!”

“What?! What is it?!”

“Oh, god! I can barely look at it! It’s hideous! It’s the freakiest thing I ever saw!”

“Yoichi!” Hiro cried, excited. “Show me! I wanna see!”

“Oh, wait,” Yoichi said. “It’s just your reflection in the glass. Bahahaha!”

Hiro glared at him. “Very funny, Wolfboy.”

Rather than stopping for lunch, Hiro suggested they buy something from whatever food stalls they came across throughout the day. It made for a strange series of meals. Yoichi found himself eating cotton candy, followed by a pretzel, followed by a couple of hot dogs, two burgers, a chocolate-covered apple, a cup of hot chocolate and, finally, a striped candy cane the size of his head. It was all delicious, though he was soon feeling a bit of sugar overload.

“I’m glad we went on the roller-coaster first,” Hiro said, munching on his fourth hot dog. “I’m so stuffed I’d have puked everywhere!” He rubbed his stomach and belched. “Scuse me.”

Yoichi sucked the cane thoughtfully. “The food’s pretty good, but everything else has been kinda lame, Torch-head.”

“Only cause you’re a fraidy-cat,” Hiro shot back. “Well, fraidy-wolf.” Something caught his eye in the distance, and he pointed excitedly. “Oh! Look! I bet you wanna go on that, huh, Wolfboy?”

Yoichi followed Hiro’s pointing finger. There was some kind of pillar set up nearby, with a kind of gauge going up it and numbers along the side. The sign beside it said “TEST YOUR MIGHT – HAVE YOU GOT THE MUSCLES TO REACH THE TOP?”

“It’s one of those strength-testing machines!” Hiro explained off Yoichi’s look. “You hafta hit the hammer against the target on the bottom as hard as you can, and it makes the slidey thing shoot up into the air. If it dings the bell on the top, you win a prize!”

“Tcha. Easy.”

“That’s what you think! I tried it once, and I could barely lift the hammer!”

“Well, no wonder. You’re a scrawny weakling, Torch-head. Stand aside and let the god bod show you how it’s done.”

“The god – jeez, you’re so full of yourself, Wolfboy.”

“Better than being full of hot-dogs, pipsqueak,” Yoichi said, and jabbed a finger into Hiro’s tummy.

“Ow! Hey! Don’t poke me. I’m too full!”

That was the wrong thing to say. Yoichi poked Hiro over and over, while the younger boy squealed and tried to fend him off.

Eventually they arrived at the strength-tester. The carnival worker in charge was a handsome, well-built guy in his twenties. He looked Yoichi over appraisingly.

“Well, hello, boys,” the attendant said. “You guys looking to try out your muscles?”

Yoichi flexed his biceps. “I am. Not sure about the pipsqueak here.”

Hiro’s inner competitiveness flared up. “I wanna try again too! I’m sure I’m strong enough! I’ve been working out!”

“Really? I must’ve missed that day,” Yoichi said.

“Shut up, Wolfboy. How much is it, mister?”

Hiro handed over his money and the attendant passed him the hammer. As soon as the attendant released his grip, however, the hammer fell to the ground, dragging Hiro with it.

Yoichi shook his head, smiling.

Hiro struggled and sweated, trying desperately to lift the hammer again. With a yank he managed to get it upright and swing it over his head, only for it to continue swinging and thump back onto the ground again behind him.

“Whoa, careful there, kid!” the attendant cried. Both he and Yoichi took a cautious couple of steps back.

“Don’t worry!” Hiro said, still straining to pick up the hammer. “I got this! I got this!”

“Give up, Torch-head. You’re gonna pull something.”

“The only – thing – I’m gonna – pull,” Hiro said, panting and struggling, “is this – hammer – right – off the – off – the – the – oh, man...” He gave up, letting the hammer fall onto its side with an anticlimactic thump “What’s thing made of?!” he cried.

“Stone,” the attendant explained. “The handle is wood.”

Yoichi chuckled. “Move over, weakling. Let a real man show you how it’s done.”

Hiro grudgingly stood aside. Yoichi reached down and hefted the hammer up onto his shoulder, single-handed. He swung it around easily for a few seconds, testing its weight.

“Okay, okay, so you can lift it,” Hiro grumbled. “Quit showing off and hit the target.”

Yoichi stood in front of the strength-tester. He raised and lowered the hammer a few times, practising his aim.

“I’m waaaait-iiiiing,” Hiro said in a sing-song voice.

Yoichi swung the hammer overhead. It hit the target with a mighty thump. The ‘slidey thing’, as Hiro called it, only rose halfway up the pillar before falling back down to the ground.

“What the hell?” Yoichi said.

“Ha! Wolfboy failed too! Guess those guns are just for display after all!” Hiro crowed.

“That was just a practice run,” Yoichi said irritably. “ _This_ one is for real.”  
He swung the hammer again. This time, the slidey-thing went slightly further up, but was still shy of the bell.

Hiro snickered.

Yoichi swung the hammer again. And again. And again. Sweat was breaking out on his forehead. As he got more frustrated, the strength of his strikes began to falter. On his final swing he missed the target entirely.

“FUCK!” Yoichi bellowed. “This thing is fucking rigged! I’m way stronger than this!”

Hiro giggled. “Maybe you’re not as fit as you think, Wolfboy. Y’know, I thought your abs were starting to fade a little ...”

“Shut up, Torch-head!” Yoichi snapped. “At least I could lift the damn thing!”

“Now, now, boys,” the attendant said cheerfully, “there’s no need to get upset! You can always try again some other time! Maybe when you’ve grown up a little-”

“Screw you! Your machine is fucking cheating!” Yoichi snarled.

The attendant’s mood changed instantly. “Listen, you little punk,” he said threateningly, “you lost, okay? Now give me back my hammer and stop making a scene.”

Yoichi glared at him, furious, as the attendant held out his hand for the hammer.

Hiro looked between them, worried. “Come on, Wolfboy, it’s not a big deal. No one ever rings the bell. Don’t get all worked up over it.”

Yoichi continued to glare at the attendant.

“Give me the hammer, kid,” the attendant said, locking eyes with him.

“Give you the hammer? Okay. Okay. I’ll give you the fucking _hammer._ YAAAA!”

Yoichi swung the hammer over his head. The force of it striking the target lifted him off his feet. The slidey-thing rose higher than ever before – but was still several feet off striking the bell.

There was, however, a distinct cracking sound as the hammer broke in half.

“Holy shit,” Hiro breathed, goggle-eyed.

“Did you see that?!” Yoichi cried, laughing. “I did it! I broke the fucking hammer! Ha ha! I bet no one’s ever done _that_ before!”

“What the hell is wrong with you, man?!” the attendant cried. “That comes out of my pay!”

“Good! Shove your broken, crooked game up your ass!” Yoichi cried, still laughing.

“That’s it. I’m calling security,” the attendant declared.

“Um, Yoichi, I think we should be going now,” Hiro said, tugging on his arm. The attendant had run off to flag down a member of the security team who was patrolling the carnival. “Like _right_ now. Come on!”

“But I didn’t get my prize!”

“Wolfboy, come on, move it! Ugh. I’m too full to run like this ...”

“Did we lose them?” Hiro asked, panting.

“I dunno,” Yoichi said, looking around the park. The attendant and the security guard had been right behind them, but now were out of sight. The park was slightly busier than it had been when they arrived, but the crowds were still sparse enough for them to be easily spotted. “I don’t see them,” he said.

Hiro groaned and rubbed his stomach. “I can’t run any more. I’m gonna hurl. I need to sit down.”

“Shit! It’s them!” Yoichi hissed, pointing.

The attendant and security guard had rounded the corner of a distant tent. Yoichi and Hiro hadn’t been spotted yet, but it would only be a matter of time.

“We need to hide,” Hiro said, looking around. “Quick! In here!”

He grabbed Yoichi’s hand and dragged him to a nearby ride. “Two please,” he said to the ticket seller, rushing past without waiting for his change. The boys hopped onto an ornate barge which was floating on a narrow channel of water. The barge set off down the channel, moving at a frustratingly slow pace.

“Duck down!” Hiro hissed.

The boys ducked underneath the edge of the barge just as the attendant and security guard ran past. They hid there for what seemed like an hour – but was probably less than a minute – crouching by the seats as the barge went lazily downstream.

“Should we look?” Hiro asked.

Yoichi shook his head. “Not yet.”

They floated on in silence.

Yoichi sniffed and made a face. “Ew. What’s that smell?! Torch-head, did you-”

“Shut up, Wolfboy,” Hiro whispered defensively. His cheeks were burning. “My stomach’s a little upset, okay?!”

Yoichi gagged and pulled the collar of his shirt up over his nose. “Oh my _god._ I can’t breathe! Hold it in next time, will ya? Jeez!”

“Shh! They’ll hear you!”

“They won’t be able to hear me over the sound of you busting ass, Torch-head!”

They floated on in silence for another thirty seconds.

“I’m gonna chance it,” Yoichi said. Before Hiro could protest, he peeked up over the edge of their seats. “I don’t see anyone. They’re gone.”

Breathing a sigh of relief – considerably easier now that the air had cleared – the boys got into their seats and took in their surroundings.

“Huh. So what is this thing? Some kinda log flume ride?” Yoichi asked.

“I hope not,” Hiro moaned, rubbing his stomach.

The barge rounded a bend in the ‘river’, bringing an archway into view. The name of the ride could be seen on the archway in flowing gold script: _The Tunnel of Love_.

It was only then that the boys realised every other barge on the ride was occupied by a young couple.

“What the hell is this?! Some kinda cheesy romantic thing?” Yoichi demanded.

“I swear I didn’t know when I pulled us in here!” Hiro protested.

“Hmph. Sure you didn’t. This is right up your street, Torch-head. Dorky, try-hard bullshit.”

“I was just trying to stop us getting kicked out of the park after _you_ acted like a delinquent and got us in trouble! As usual!”

“Well, I wish we had gotten kicked out! Then we could’ve done something fun, instead of sit through this crap!”

“Well I’m _sorry_! I’m such a jerk for trying to do something nice! Why do I even bother?!”

“Beats me, Torch-head! Why _do_ you bother?!”

They turned away from each other, arms, folded, fuming. The barge passed through the archway and into the tunnel which made up the main part of the ride. The lighting inside the tunnel was soft and warm, with faint classical music playing through hidden speakers. The barge floated slowly past various ‘romantic’ scenes: a very small pyramid in the middle of a very small desert; a starry sky of fairy lights stuck on black felt, some of which had gone out; and a tropical jungle of plastic palm fronds with stuffed parrots perched in the trees.

Hiro and Yoichi passed through this in silence, refusing even to look at each other.

Finally, Yoichi sighed and said, “I’m sorry.”

The words were so unexpected they startled Hiro out of his bad mood. “Huh?”

“I said I’m _sorry_. I was being a jerk.”

“Oh. Um. That’s okay?”

Yoichi shook his head. “It’s not okay. You’re putting a lot of effort into trying to make this weekend fun, and I’m just pissing all over it. Sorry.”

Hiro sighed. “Nah. You’re right. I’m trying too hard. I’m forcing it. Just like always.”

“No, you’re not. And I am having fun. Honest. I liked the dumb barbecue place. And I liked spending time with you. I’m just no good at all this crap,” Yoichi said disgustedly, gesturing at their surroundings.

Hiro looked confused. “Fake palm trees?”

Yoichi chuckled. “No. You know what I mean. Romantic shit. Lovey-dovey junk. _Feelings.”_

“Oh.”

They floated on in silence. The tension eased.

Hiro stole a glance over at Yoichi. The older boy was staring moodily out into the dim interior of the tunnel, chin resting on one hand. His other hand lay on the seat between them.

Before he could think better of it, Hiro reached out and took Yoichi’s hand in his own. Yoichi started, tensing instinctively, almost pulling his hand away. Then he relaxed, letting Hiro hold his hand.

Hiro smiled tentatively at him.

Yoichi smiled back.

It was a crooked, awkward, embarrassed smile, but a smile nonetheless.

They emerged from the tunnel of love to find no sign of either the attendant or the security guard. Deciding it was best to keep moving, they continued to explore the park in the furthest region away from the incident. At first, Hiro kept an anxious eye out for any sign of their pursuers, but as the afternoon wore on he began to forget his worry and started to enjoy himself.

The hall of mirrors cracked them both up. Hiro took a picture of their distorted image as a keepsake of the one time he was taller than Yoichi. They passed a puppet show that was pretty entertaining, at least until one of the puppets started insulting the audience. Yoichi got into an argument with the crocodile puppet after it made an unflattering remark about his choker, and Hiro thought it best to move on before the situation deteriorated. The bumper cars let Yoichi work off some of his anger by ramming into strangers, though it made Hiro vow never to accept a ride should the older boy ever obtain a licence. They tried their hand at several games, including a ring toss and a shooting gallery, and for once managed to have fun competing without things getting too heated. Yoichi won an oversized stuffed teddy bear which he handed to Hiro, claiming that he wouldn’t be seen dead with such a lame prize, yet he was blushing slightly as he passed it over. Hiro spent the rest of the afternoon staggering around the park carrying the bear, which was almost as big as he was, yet refused to let it go. He carried it with him even around the haunted house, which Yoichi proclaimed was “totally lame” - at least, until a zombie put their hand on his shoulder, causing him to shriek in surprise and almost jump into Hiro’s arms. Hiro was laughing so hard that the zombie had to obligingly hold onto the teddy bear until he had enough breath to stand up again, while Yoichi ran for the exit.

Hiro met up with him outside, still grinning and wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

“Oh man, Wolfboy, that was a classic! You should’ve seen the look on your face! I haven’t seen you that scared since we told ghost stories back at camp!”

“I wasn’t scared,” Yoichi grumbled, leaning against the outside of the haunted house with his arms folded across the chest. “He just startled me, is all.”

“Uh huh. Suuurre. That’s why you ran out with your tail between your legs.”

“I was bored! B-besides, if any more of those jerks had startled me like that, I-I might have swung for ‘em! And then we’d get kicked out for sure.”

Hiro snickered.

“Shut up, Torch-head. Anyway, what do you want to do next?”

Hiro sighed and looked around. “I think we’ve pretty much done everything there is to do. Only a couple of things left. There’s the Ferris wheel – and that.”

Yoichi followed where Hiro was pointing, toward a small tent several feet away. The sign outside said “Madame Sybil – Gaze into Your Future!”

“Huh? A fortune teller? Don’t tell me you believe in that crap, Torch-head.”

“Wellll, I dunno, Wolfboy. I went to her once before and she was really good. She knew all about me!”

“Come on, don’t be such a dummy. It’s all fake. They just take a few guesses and let you fill in the blanks.”

“But she was really accurate! She knew I was secretly pining for someone.”

“Yeah, you and about half the planet.”

“Well, she knew I loved food and wanted to be a chef!”

“There’s like three different kinds of chocolate stains on your shirt, dumbass.”

“She knew my mom was ill!”

“She said that?”

“Yeah! She said I’d had trouble with at least one of my parents!”

Yoichi sighed. “Torch-head. Don’t you get it? She says something vague and lets you do all the work figuring out what it means.”

“Well, why don’t we go see her then? I’ll prove it to you! Come on!”

Hiro grabbed Yoichi’s hand and led him toward the tent. Fortunately there was no line, though they had to wait for the customer before them to finish their session.

“Come on, Torch-head, let’s just go,” Yoichi said impatiently. “This is a waste of time.”

“Hmph! You’re just scared, I bet. Spooky stuff freaks you out.”

The tent flaps opened and a terrified young man appeared. He was sweating and looking around, as though expecting someone or something to jump out at him at any moment. He ran off into the park, still darting glances around as though his future was going to ambush him from behind one of the tents.

“Wow,” Hiro whispered. “What do you think she told _him_?”

“That he’s a gullible idiot?”

“Wolfboy, shush! Come on, it’s our turn now.”

The inside of the tent was dark and foreboding. Madame Sybil was an old woman wrapped in a shawl and headscarf, sitting over a table on which a crystal ball stood. Hiro took a seat, wide-eyed with anticipation, while Yoichi rolled his eyes and remained standing in the shadows.

“Greetings, my child,” Madame Sybil said to Hiro. “For a price, I can peer through the mists of time and reveal to you all paths as yet untaken. But beware! For not all can withstand the sight of what awaits them in their future.”

“Actually, I’ve already had my future told by you,” Hiro explained.

“Pssh. She can’t even see into the past, let alone the future,” Yoichi muttered.

“Shush!” Hiro hissed over his shoulder. “Would you read _his_ future?” he asked.

Madame Sybil peered at Yoichi with shrewd eyes. “I sense he is a sceptic,” she said.

Hiro nodded.

“Alas, the spirits who guide my sight do not always lend themselves to aid the unbelievers,” the fortune teller said.

Yoichi snorted. “That’s convenient.”

“Yoichi! Don’t insult the spirits!”

“Oh, come _on,_ Torch-head! This is total bullshit! If she was really psychic she’d be winning the lottery every week, not sitting in a tent talking to you and me!”

Madame Sybil chuckled. “The spirits do not permit me to use my sight for selfish gain. I can only glimpse the future in order to guide others toward the right path in life. My calling is merely to aid the lost souls who come my way. Lost souls like you,” she said, pointing at Yoichi.

Yoichi shook his head. “That’s it. I’m outta here.”

“She still watches over you, you know,” the psychic said.

Yoichi froze on his way out of the tent.

“Yoichi!” Hiro breathed. “She must be talking about –“

“DON’T,” Yoichi barked, jabbing a finger toward Hiro to silence him. “Don’t. Help. Her.”

“She has a message for you,” the psychic insisted.

“Really. And who is _she_?” Yoichi demanded. There was an edge in his voice.

The psychic stared off into the distance, as though listening to an invisible voice. “The name is so faint. So difficult to hear. She’s calling from so far away, and yet not in words. I can feel her love for you, reaching out between the worlds, stronger than death itself.”

“Vague,” Yoichi growled. “Fucking. _Bullshit._ ”

“She wants you to know it wasn’t your fault.”

Yoichi’s hands were balled into fists and he was trembling with suppressed rage. “Shut up,” he said.

“Yoichi ...” Hiro began.

“She doesn’t blame you for what happened,” the psychic said, still in a trance.

“SHUT. UP,” Yoichi snarled.

Hiro stood up and went to Yoichi’s side. He put his hand on the older boy’s arm, feeling the tension in his muscles, and tried to calm him down.

“Maybe we should go,” he said.

“You’re a fucking liar. A fraud! Taking advantage of people’s grief!”

“She wants you to let her go and move on with your life,” the psychic intoned in an eerie, far away voice.

Yoichi moved forward, to do what Hiro didn’t know. Possibly attack the psychic, possibly overturn the table and smash the crystal ball against the ground. Hiro didn’t plan on finding out. He interposed himself between Yoichi and the psychic, blocking the older boy’s path and placing a hand firmly on his chest.

“Yoichi! _Yoichi!_ Go. Come on, that’s enough. Let’s get out of here.” He shoved Yoichi on the chest, pushing him toward the exit. Yoichi seemed to regain his senses, remembering where he was, and allowed Hiro to guide him out.

“I’m sorry, this was a mistake,” Hiro said to the psychic. Madame Sybil was still staring off into the distance, apparently oblivious to what was going on. Hiro dropped a few coins onto the table and followed Yoichi out of the tent.

Yoichi was staring off into the darkening sky as Hiro joined him. They stood in silence for a few moments.

“Sorry, that was a really dumb idea,” Hiro apologised. “I thought it would be fun. It was stupid of me.”

“Not your fault,” Yoichi said grimly, still staring ahead. “She touched a nerve. That’s what assholes like her do. It’s how they hook you in.”

Hiro sighed. “Yeah. I guess.”

“How the hell did you ever end up going to someone like that?” Yoichi asked. “I didn’t think you were superstitious, Torch-head.”

“I’m not! Well, not really. I just -” he paused, seemed to reconsider what he’d been about to say, then plunged ahead. “My mom took me once. Not to her, to someone else. When I was still a kid. Not long after – after my dad died.”

Yoichi glanced at him. “Shit. You never mentioned your dad before. He died?”

Hiro nodded. “When I was little. I don’t remember him too well.”

Yoichi paused. “What happened to him? You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” he added hastily.

“Industrial accident. He worked in a factory, they didn’t take the right precautions. Cut a lot of corners. I guess he paid the price.” He smiled grimly. “Funnily enough, if the company hadn’t paid us off, I don’t know what we’d have done when my mom got sick. The money came in really handy.” He swallowed. “But I’d still rather have my dad.”

Yoichi absorbed this. “And that’s when your mom started going to psychics?”

“She didn’t go all the time. Just once or twice. It was a few years after it happened, she was all alone with just me, and I didn’t really understand. I guess they just made her feel better. Like my dad was still watching over us. I used to think about that when she tucked me into bed at night. Like he was still there, hovering over me, looking down at me, making sure everything would be all right. Dumb, I guess.”

Yoichi said nothing.

“Man, that was depressing,” Hiro said with false cheer. “Sorry for bringing everything down.” He checked his watch. “It’s getting late. We should probably head home soon, anyway.”

“Not just yet,” Yoichi said.

“No?”

“Yeah. There’s something I wanna do, first.”

Yoichi took Hiro’s hand and led him off towards the Ferris wheel.

“Wow! What a view! It’s so beautiful!” Hiro exclaimed.

The lights of the city were spread out beneath them in the darkness as their seats slowly climbed to the highest point of the wheel.

“Yeah, beautiful,” Yoichi said. Hiro glanced over and realised Yoichi was looking at him rather than the view.

“Jeez, Wolfboy, that was so corny,” he said, but couldn’t help himself from grinning and blushing. He sat back in the seat and hugged his arms around himself. “Brrr. It’s getting cold now that it’s dark.”

Yoichi put his arm around the smaller boy and hugged him close. They sat together in silence for a few moments, sharing the view and each other’s warmth, watching their breath float across the city lights in the cold air.

“You know something, Wolfboy?”

“Hmm?”

“You’re better at this stuff than you think.”  
“Well, don’t give me too much credit. You are pretty desperate.”

Hiro punched him playfully on the thigh. “Jerk.”

Yoichi smiled. “Loser.”

Hiro sighed happily. “I could stay like this forever.”

“Mmmm.”

“Do you _have to_ go back on Monday? It’s not like you have a job or anything.”

“I gotta take care of the pups, remember? Don’t think Natsumi could look after them much longer. His last few texts sounded pretty desperate.”

“Bring them here! You can all stay in the apartment with me!”

“Torch-head, I don’t wanna be ‘rude’ again, but your crummy apartment is barely big enough for the two of us, never mind four dogs. Have you _seen_ how big they’re getting?”

Hiro sighed. “I just don’t want you to go back. I’m gonna miss you so much.”

“Ah, you’ll be back at Camp Buddy in no time. Your mom’s doing pretty well, right? You guys will be moving home before you know it.”

“Don’t you miss _me_ when I’m not around?”

“Torch-head, remember when you told me to let you know when you sounded too clingy and insecure?”

“I never told you that!”

“Well, you should have. This is one of those times.”

“Aw. Okay. Sorry.”

“I’m used to it. Little psycho.”

“Hehehehe.”

“... But, yeah. I miss you. A lot.”

“Awww! That’s so sweet.”

“Don’t push it.”

The Ferris wheel reached its zenith and started to descend again, bringing them back toward the ground. Hiro squirmed against Yoichi and closed his eyes, trying to force the moment to last as long as possible.

He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

He ignored it.

When they arrived back at Hiro’s apartment, Yoichi was amused to hear the younger boy announce he intended to make them both a snack to ‘settle his stomach’. While Hiro busied himself in the kitchen, Yoichi played another few rounds of _Shirtless Warriors_ against Seto. He got his ass kicked again, but, somehow, it didn’t seem to irritate him quite as much this time. He even found enough grace to message Seto [gg] when the match was over.

Yoichi was flicking through the TV channels and checking his phone messages while he waited for Hiro to finish cooking. There were a bunch of messages from Brokeback, checking in on him every hour to make sure he was okay. Natsumi had finally fallen silent, probably because the dogs had tied him up and left him locked in one of the cabins. There were a few picture messages Hiro had sent through to give Yoichi his own mementos of their day. One showed him and Hiro, grinning and covered in barbecue sauce, holding up the certificate they’d won for beating the Carnivore Challenge. There were pictures of them both at various points throughout the city. Pictures of them in the hall of mirrors, or putting their heads through cardboard cut-outs. Pictures of Hiro struggling to carry his enormous teddy bear around the park. The picture of Yoichi with his eyes closed on the Gravity Well. Pictures of them both in the Ferris wheel, looking out over the city at night.

Yoichi scrolled through them all again, a faint smile on his face. This weekend had certainly exceeded his expectations – and best of all, it wasn’t over yet. Whatever Torch-head was cooking up in the kitchen smelled amazing, and once that was done he was sure they’d –

A buzzer sounded in the apartment.

“Yoichi?” Hiro called. “Can you answer that? The intercom’s by the door. It’s probably one of the neighbours wanting in. Mrs Tanaka keeps forgetting her keys.”

Yoichi got up from the sofa and went over to the intercom. He pressed the button and said “Hello?”

No answer.

“Who was it?” Hiro called.

“Nobody!”

“Someone else probably let her in, then.”

Yoichi threw himself back onto the couch and grabbed the remote. He flicked through the channels, searching for something they could watch while they ate. Hiro loved cooking shows, he could probably find one of those if he tried.

He was just settling down to watch that swearing British guy yell at a hapless restaurateur when he was interrupted by a knock at the apartment door. Sighing, Yoichi heaved himself to his feet and went to answer it.

“Don’t worry, I got it!” he called to Hiro.

“Thanks!”

Yoichi unlocked the door and threw it open.

Keitaro Nagame was standing in the hallway, hand raised as if poised to knock at the door a second time. His expression brightened when the door opened, only to become confused when he saw who had answered it.

“Frogboy?!

_“Yoichi?!”_

They stared at each other in confusion.

Then, simultaneously, each asked the other: “What are _you_ doing here?!”


	3. Never Trust a Chihuahua

“Wolfboy? Who was at the d–”

Hiro emerged from the kitchen, saw Keitaro standing in the doorway, and froze in mid-sentence. His mouth continued working but no sound emerged. For perhaps the first time in his life he was completely at a loss for words.

“Um, hi, Hiro,” Keitaro said sheepishly, giving a small wave. “Sorry for dropping in unannounced. I, uh, wanted to surprise you.” He glanced nervously between Hiro and Yoichi.

“Mission accomplished,” Yoichi muttered.

“Wuh – who – where – how did you know where I _was_?” Hiro asked stupidly.

“Oh. I, ah, called your mom. She told me where you guys were living now.”

“But how did you even _get_ here?!” Hiro spluttered.

For a second, Keitaro was too flustered to answer. Then he blurted: “M-my sister drove me! She’s waiting in a cafe down the street.” Now that the initial shock of his greeting had worn off, Keitaro seemed nervous and eager to leave. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t think I would be – I mean, that you guys had – not that you _are_ – or, I don’t know, maybe -” he stammered, then trailed off. “I didn’t think I’d be interrupting anything. I’m sorry.”

“You’re not interrupting anything!” Hiro said.

“He’s _not_?” Yoichi snapped.

“I mean, we were just about to have some food! You can join us. If you want to.”

“Uh, I don’t know ...” Keitaro said, eyeing Yoichi’s scowl. “I think I should just leave.”

“No! Noooo!” Hiro urged, suddenly coming alive again. “You came all this way! You can’t just _go_! Yoichi, you don’t mind if Keitaro joins us, do you?”

Yoichi didn’t answer. Instead he stepped back from the doorway and gestured for Keitaro to enter, all without looking anyone in the face. His expression was clearly annoyed, but Hiro seemed oblivious.

“Um. Thanks. I won’t stay too long, I promise. My sister’s waiting for me,” Keitaro stammered as he came in. Yoichi slammed the door behind him.

“Yeah. You said,” Yoichi muttered, throwing himself into a chair.

Keitaro gingerly sat down on the couch. Hiro joined him. Now that he had gotten over his surprise, he was animated and eager once more.

“I can’t believe you’re here!” he exclaimed. “What made you decide to visit?”

“Uh, well, you know, we’ve been talking again. On text,” Keitaro said, glancing over at Yoichi.

“You have?” Yoichi said dangerously.

Keitaro swallowed. “And, um, you didn’t respond to my last couple of messages, so I thought, maybe I should just drop in and see if you’re okay.”

“Oh! We were at Funtopia today,” Hiro explained, apparently unaware of Yoichi’s increasing irritation. “I guess I haven’t had a chance to check my messages yet. It was _so_ much fun!”

“That’s nice,” Keitaro said. He coughed. “What are you making?” he asked, pointing toward the kitchen.

“My pasta!” Hiro cried, remembering. “I better go check on it!” He shot to his feet and scampered off out of the room, leaving Keitaro and Yoichi sitting in an awkward atmosphere.

They sat like that for several moments, Keitaro fidgeting uncomfortably while Yoichi flicked through TV channels, seething in silence.

“So, how long have-” Keitaro started.

“You know what,” Yoichi interrupted, standing up suddenly. “I’m not that hungry any more. Tell Torch-head I’m going out for a walk.” He stormed out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him, before Keitaro could even think of a reply.

Keitaro was left sitting on the couch by himself. He briefly considered following Yoichi’s example and just booking it out of there, but decided he’d made enough rash decisions for one day. Getting to his feet, he steeled himself and went to join Hiro in the kitchen.

Hiro was busying himself at the stove, chopping vegetables and mixing sauce while his pasta simmered. The smell was amazing – pumpkin pasta, Keitaro realised with a sudden pang of nostalgia, the same dish Hiro had made for them both way back at the beginning of camp. Hiro was humming to himself as he worked, blissfully unaware of what had just happened back in the living room.

“Uh, Hiro?” Keitaro said. “Yoichi went out for a walk. H-he said he’s not feeling very hungry.”

“Well, that’s not surprising,” Hiro replied cheerfully. “We ate so much at the park today. But that was _hours_ ago, and I’m starving!” He giggled. “Remember this stuff, Keitaro? I know you won’t say no to another bowl of it!”

Keitaro gulped and took the plunge. “He seemed kinda upset, actually.”

“Upset?” Hiro said, distracted.

“Yeah. Like, annoyed at me being here.”

“Aw, no way! Wolfboy likes you. He warmed up to you before any of us, remember?”

Keitaro sighed. “Hiro, that’s not what I meant. What is Yoichi even doing here? Are you guys a – a couple, or something? Because I kinda feel like an intruder.”

Hiro didn’t answer for some time. Keitaro was beginning to think that he hadn’t heard the question, when suddenly the orange-haired boy turned around, showing that the mask of obliviousness had slipped.

“I don’t know _what_ we are,” he said miserably. “I don’t know what me and Yoichi are, and I sure as _hell_ don’t know what me and _you_ are. I don’t know _anything_ any more. That’s why I didn’t reply to your text, okay? I thought you’d give me some time to think. I didn’t expect you to just barge in on me like this!”

“Oh,” Keitaro said, admonished. “I’m sorry. It was stupid of me. I just – I thought you’d be happy to see me.”

“I _would’ve_ been happy to see you!” Hiro cried, raising his voice in sudden anger. “A _month_ ago! Or two months ago! Back when you were still icing me out! I was _miserable_! I’ve never felt so horrible in my life! All of this stuff was happening with my mom, and I had to move to a new city, and I had no one to talk to about it! Not my boyfriend! Not even my _best friend!”_

Keitaro hung his head in shame. “I know. I’m so, so sorry for shutting you out, Hiro. I had no idea how bad things were with your mom, how much you were going through. But I needed time to think about what happened between us at camp.”

“So did I!” Hiro said, building up a head of steam. “And I _took_ that time. And I _thought_ about it. And just when I was starting to get over it, just when I was starting _not_ to think about you every second of every day, just when I started to think that there was someone else I could be with – BAM! _That_ ’s when you choose to come back into my life and put me right back to square one!”

Hiro was glaring at him, furious. Keitaro had never seen him like this, not even during their most dramatic fights back at camp. In the past, Hiro’s anger had always been deflected at someone else – at Natsumi, or Yoichi, or whoever else he’d imagined Keitaro was secretly planning to replace him with. Keitaro himself had never felt the brunt of Hiro’s displeasure before now, and its intensity alarmed him.

“I’m sorry,” Keitaro said feebly. “I guess I should go.”

“Sure! Run away! That’s what you always do!” Hiro yelled. “Run away or just stand there like a mute without even telling me what you’re thinking! And then when I’m supposed to guess and get it wrong, somehow it’s all _my_ fault!”

Hiro continued to glare, waiting for a response. Keitaro stood dumb, withdrawing into himself as he always did when he was attacked.

The saucepan of pasta boiled over, distracting Hiro’s attention. He swore and turned away from Keitaro to deal with it. The pause gave him time to calm down. He fetched a deep, frustrated sigh.

“ _I’m_ sorry,” Hiro said, wiping up the spilled water with a cloth. “Sorry for what I said just now. And sorry for everything back at camp. It’s all just such a _mess_.”

“I know,” Keitaro said sadly.

“I wish I could just put things back the way they were,” Hiro said, staring out of the kitchen window. “Back before I confessed my stupid feelings to you in the first place. At least then you were still my friend.”

“A-and is that all you want me to be?” Keitaro asked. “Your friend?”

Hiro didn’t answer for a long time. Then, summoning up his courage, he turned to look Keitaro in the eye.

“I’ll always love you, Keitaro,” he said. “I’ve loved you for as long as I’ve known what the word _meant_. You’re a part of me and you always will be. Sometimes I wish I could change that, but I can’t. I love you.”

They held each other’s gaze.

“But?” Keitaro said hesitantly.

Hiro sighed. “ _But_ … I’m no good for you. And you’re no good for me. I get – crazy, around you. I lose all sense of perspective. All I can think about is how much I love you, and spending every moment with you, and wanting all of your attention to myself. And that’s not good. Not for either of us.”

Keitaro looked at the ground.

“And you – you’re too, well – _submissive_ , I guess?” Hiro said. “Or maybe ‘kind’ is a nicer way of putting it. You put up with too much of my crap. You just stand there and take it, letting me spiral until I say more and more stupid stuff that ends up hurting both of us. I need someone who’s willing to tell me to shut the hell up every once in a while.”

“Like Yoichi?” Keitaro asked, eyes still downcast.

Hiro smiled to himself. “Yeah. I know we don’t make a lot of sense to some people. And at first, I guess I was kind of on the rebound. It was just nice to have someone to hang out with. Especially someone who wouldn’t make me talk about you. But the more I hung out with him ...” Hiro paused, gathering his thoughts. “He _gets_ me. And he doesn’t let me get away with any of my crap. And he’s – _fun_ , y’know? We have a good time together. Mostly. We bicker a lot. And he’s _impossible_ to put up with. But, well ...”

“But you love him,” Keitaro finished.

Hiro laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head. “Y-yeah,” he said hesitantly. “I think I do.” He sighed. “I just don’t know if I could ever tell _him_ that.” He ventured a smile at Keitaro. “But it’s nice to tell someone. I’ve missed having my best friend to talk to.”

Keitaro smiled back. “I’ve missed talking to you, too,” he said eagerly. “To be honest, that’s kind of been the worst part of all this. I didn’t just lose a relationship. I lost my best friend as well.” He paused. “Do you – do you think we could start over? Just as friends?”

Hiro beamed. “I’d like that. I’d _really_ like that!”

The pasta was ready. Hiro served it onto two plates, keeping some in the oven for Yoichi when he returned. He and Keitaro took their plates to the table and continued chatting throughout their meal, catching each other up on everything that had happened in the months since they’d been apart.

“Mmmm, that was amazing!” Keitaro said when the meal was over. “I think you’ve even improved the recipe since last time!”

“Aw, you praise me too much,” Hiro said, blushing. “I’m glad you enjoyed it.” He glanced at the clock. “I wonder where Wolfboy is? I thought he’d be back in as soon as he smelled dinner cooking.”

“Maybe he’s still angry at me,” Keitaro said anxiously. “He looked pretty mad when he left.”

“He _always_ looks mad,” Hiro said. “Don’t let it get to you.”

“Still, maybe I should go,” Keitaro said, standing up from the table. “He might be waiting for me to leave before he comes back. And I shouldn’t really keep my sister waiting any longer either.”

“Okay,” Hiro said, disappointed. “Well, it was great catching up with you. I’m glad we got everything sorted out.”

“Me too,” Keitaro said.

They walked to the door. The goodbye was slightly awkward, neither of them knowing quite what to do. Then Hiro grabbed Keitaro and gave him a hug.

“Don’t be such a stranger any more, ’kay?” Hiro said, still hugging him.

“I won’t,” Keitaro said. He hugged Hiro back. “Thanks for dinner.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Keitaro opened the door. He paused in the doorway, as if about to say something else. Then, thinking better of it, he turned and left.

Hiro watched him get on the elevator. As he disappeared inside, Hiro closed the door and leaned against it, breathing out a massive sigh of relief.

A thousand thoughts were running through his head at once. Had Keitaro really come all this way, just to ask if they could be friends again? Hiro had dreaded broaching the subject with him. He’d been holding off all weekend on replying to that text, knowing he had to phrase it exactly right. He’d thought Keitaro had come to make a grand gesture, an apology, to try an win him back. Had Yoichi’s presence thrown him off? And yet, he’d seemed almost _relieved_ when Hiro agreed that they return to just being friends again.

In fact – hadn’t he been the one to suggest that first?

Hiro was thoroughly confused.

He’d been wrestling with his feelings all weekend, struggling to puzzle out what he felt for Keitaro while still enjoying his time with Yoichi. The old possessive urge was still there, still goading him into declaring his love for Keitaro and demanding that he cling to him with every fibre of his being, but he was starting to think it was more of a habit than an expression of his real feelings. He’d been infatuated with Keitaro for so long that it was hard to break out of that thought pattern. The fact that he still loved Keitaro only complicated matters – but you could love your friends, right? You were _supposed_ to. When he refused to give in to the panicky fear that Keitaro would leave him, when he recognised that they could go back to being friends and stay in each other’s lives without anything more, there was only one feeling he was left with.

He loved Yoichi.

_Yoichi,_ he thought. _Where did you go?_

He definitely had some apologising to do there. He’d been so overwhelmed by Keitaro’s appearance that he’d pretty much ignored Wolfboy. No wonder he’d stormed out. The big lug was probably stewing in jealousy somewhere in the stairwell. Oh well, he’d get over it. In fact, it kind of tickled Hiro to realise that _he_ would now be the one telling _Yoichi_ not to be so insecure.

He went into the living room and grabbed his cell phone. Pulling up his contact list, he dialled Yoichi’s number. It rang and rang. No answer. Before he could be sent to voice mail, Hiro hung up and redialled. Again, no answer. This time he decided to leave a message.

“Wolfboy, stop sulking and come eat your dinner,” he said. “Keitaro’s gone. Everything’s fine. You didn’t have to make such a dramatic –”

Hiro trailed off when he spotted something sitting on the coffee table in the middle of the living room.

It was Yoichi’s phone.

What the hell was Frogboy doing here?

Had he come to win Hiro back?

Is that why he’d looked so shocked to see Hiro wasn’t alone?

Yoichi stalked along the city street, hands in his pockets, head down, scowl on his face. The city was still alive even at this time of night, but most people took one look at Yoichi and gave him a wide berth.

_You should’ve stayed_ , he told himself. _You know how Torch-head feels about Frogboy. You basically left them alone together. What did you_ think _was gonna happen?_

He hadn’t been thinking, in truth. He’d felt his anger building and had simply known that he had to get out of there before he said something he’d regret. Instead of cooling him down, leaving and going for a walk seemed to be riling him up even more as his mind’s eye tortured him with elaborate fantasies of exactly what was going on back in Hiro’s apartment right now.

_They’re probably fucking on the floor,_ he thought. _They probably got right down to it as soon as they realised I was gone._

But Hiro wouldn’t do that – would he?

_This is Frogboy we’re talking about. Torch-head has no self control when it comes to him._

That had certainly been true in the past, but what about now? Everything he and Hiro had shared together – did that all mean nothing?

_Face it, buddy,_ Yoichi told himself. _If this weekend has proved anything, it’s that you suck at relationships. You’re just a six-pack with a face attached to most people. As soon as they shoot their load you don’t have anything else to offer them._

He remembered Hiro telling him that he was better at emotional stuff than he thought he was, but the words seemed hollow and meaningless in the face of Keitaro’s return.

_Maybe I should’ve stayed,_ he thought. _I should’ve stayed and fought for him._

But he knew he could never have done anything of the sort. If Torch-head was even considering getting back with Frogboy, Yoichi was done. He refused to stoop to the level of trying to convince him.

_Besides,_ a part of his mind whispered, _it’s better that way. Then when he ditches you, you can pretend it was only because you weren’t really trying. That’s gotta hurt way less than putting yourself out there and getting rejected, right?_

Shut up, he told himself, shut _up_. He didn’t need Torch-head. He didn’t need Frogboy. He didn’t need _any_ of them. Not even Brokeback. He’d gotten on perfectly fine by himself long before any of them had come along, and he’d be fine without any of them, too. Maybe he’d go back to camp, pick up the pups and leave the whole place behind. He could hit the road again, just him and the dogs. You could rely on dogs. Dogs were loyal. Dogs didn’t abandon you the second something better came along.

It had started to rain. It was definitely rain falling on his head. It was _probably_ rain getting in his eyes, spilling over his lashes and running down his face, and nobody could prove differently.

He didn’t want to go back to the apartment. Not now, not ever. And yet he couldn’t stay outside in the rain. He scanned the street, searching for a sanctuary he could duck into to ride out the rain. His eyes landed on a sign saying _Have a Java_. He recognised it as a late-night coffee shop. Torch-head had been going on endlessly about the quality of their pastries. Yoichi decided he could use a cup of something warm and comforting.

He walked up to the door and was about to open it when his eyes caught sight of something through the glass window. It was someone’s hair, sticking up over the top of a corner booth at the far side of the coffee shop. He could only see the very top of it, but the hairstyle was so distinct that Yoichi knew it couldn’t belong to anyone else.

He remembered Keitaro saying that his sister was waiting for him in a coffee shop down the street.

Yoichi had never met Keitaro’s sister, but he now knew for a fact she was _not_ the one who had brought him to the city.

Pushing open the door, Yoichi went inside. He went up to the counter and placed his order quietly, taking care not to speak too loud. While the server brought his order, he took time to collect his thoughts. He paid, collected his coffee, and took it over to the booth.

“Hey, Dynamite,” he said, sitting down opposite him. “Fancy seeing you here.”

Taiga almost did a spit take, which ended up in a coughing fit as a swallow of coffee went down the wrong pipe. Yoichi reached across and thumped him on the back as the other boy continued coughing and spluttering, his eyes wide with shock.

“Y- _Yoichi_?!” Taiga coughed.

“Small world, huh?” Yoichi said.

Taiga took a sip of his coffee, gradually getting himself under control again. Yoichi calmly took a bite from his danish. Hiro had been right, it _was_ good.

“Wuh-what are you doing here?” Taiga asked, alarmed.

Yoichi raised his coffee cup by way of explanation. “Getting coffee.” He took a sip.

“I mean _here_! In this city! In the capital!”

“Oh, right. Well, I was visiting Hiro. We’re kinda a thing now.”

Taiga’s eyes widened even more. “You are? Wait, you _are_? Oh shit, I gotta-”

He started to get up, but Yoichi waved him back down. “Relax. You’re too late. Cat’s already out of the bag. Frogboy’s up there talking to him right now.”

Taiga looked like a rabbit in the headlights. Under other circumstances it would’ve been funny, Yoichi thought. The poor guy hadn’t looked so stressed even when they’d confronted him about his antics back at camp.

“I’m sorry,” Taiga blurted. His eyes were darting wildly around the room, as though he was expecting someone else to burst in on them. Sweat had broken out on his forehead, Yoichi noticed. “I didn’t realise you guys were – were – uh, you know. I haven’t been around at Camp Buddy as much lately, or I guess I would’ve put two and two together.”

“Well, yeah,” Yoichi said amiably. “I figured you were busy with other things. Guess I should’ve realised it was other _people_.” He took a sip of coffee.

Taiga blushed.

“So, how long have you and Frogboy been together?” Yoichi asked.

Taiga flinched as though Yoichi had moved to hit him.

“W-what makes you think-” he started.

“Come _on_ , man,” Yoichi said, raising an eyebrow at him.

Taiga sighed and gave up the pretence. “Not long,” he said, clearly still flustered. “A few weeks. It depends when you start counting.” He took a big drink of coffee. “Yoichi, if I’d known you were here visiting Hiro, I’d _never_ have brought Keitaro this weekend. You have to believe me! He was just so desperate to talk to Hiro about us! He didn’t want him finding out from someone else, after everything that happened between them during the summer! But we couldn’t keep it a secret any longer! So I said I’d drive him up there this weekend and they could talk it out. We had no idea you and Hiro had – er, plans.”

Yoichi was chuckling to himself.

“What’s so funny?” Taiga demanded.

“I was just thinking,” Yoichi said. “All summer long, Torch-head kept yapping about how Keitaro was secretly in love with Natsumi, or me, or anyone else who happened across his path. And we all kept telling him he was crazy. But all this time he was right, he just had the wrong guy in mind. There was one person he never thought Keitaro would fall for – _you_.”

Taiga looked miserably down into his coffee cup.

“I never could figure out why Frogboy kept giving you chance after chance to stop acting like such a douchebag,” Yoichi mused. “I guess now I know.”

“We didn’t mean for it to happen,” Taiga insisted. “And nothing _did_ happen, until after Keitaro and Hiro broke up. Then you guys all went your separate ways, and none of you were really talking to each other. I was kind of a shoulder for him to cry on. And I was so grateful to him for forgiving my actions at camp, and for helping me get over my attitude problem. We talked a lot, and we grew closer, and then, before either of us realised what was happening ...” He trailed off.

They drank their coffee in silence for a few moments, both of them lost in their thoughts.

“So – what happens now?” Taiga asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Are you and I – are we still – I mean, do you hate me now, or what?”

Yoichi shook his head. “Nah. Your timing sucks, but you didn’t do anything wrong, Dynamite.”

Taiga seemed surprised. “Wow. You’ve really mellowed a lot, huh?”

Yoichi chuckled. “Torch-head’s been a good influence on me.”

Taiga hesitated, then asked: “You really like him, don’t you?”

Yoichi finished his danish before answering. “Yeah,” he said thoughtfully. Then, more forcefully: “ _Yeah_. I do. You got a problem with that?”

Taiga held his hands up to indicate he didn’t.

“So _we’re_ cool,” Taiga said. “But what about them?”

Yoichi shook his head. “I guess we’ll find out soon enough.”

At that, the door to the coffee shop opened and Keitaro entered. He looked around, scanning for Taiga. He saw Yoichi first. His eyes widened, and the look was so similar to Taiga’s earlier expression that Yoichi had to laugh. Keitaro approached nervously, seeming to sense that things were okay between Yoichi and Taiga, but still hesitant to relax too much.

“Uh, hi, guys?” Keitaro said, hovering by the table. “What’s going on?” His voice was slightly strangled and a little more high-pitched than normal.

“Relax, Frogboy,” Yoichi said. “Sit down. Dynamite told me everything.”

“You did?” Keitaro asked.

“Well, he figured most of it out as soon as he saw me!” Taiga said hurriedly. “I just filled in a couple of blanks.”

Keitaro sat down beside Taiga. Yoichi was amused to see they had no idea how to behave around him, both clearly glad to see each other but reluctant to make any obvious displays of affection just yet. Watching them squirm was pretty hilarious.

“How did Torch-head take the news?” Yoichi asked. “We didn’t hear any screaming from here.”

Keitaro suddenly looked even more nervous. “Ah, well, about that-”

“You didn’t _tell_ him?!” Taiga blurted. “Come _on_ , Keitaro! That’s what this whole trip was about!”

“It just wasn’t the right moment!” Keitaro cried. “We’d only just talked things out and repaired our friendship! I didn’t want to risk that by telling him about you and me!”

“Keitaro,” Taiga said, shaking his head. “There’ll never _be_ a perfect time. The longer you put it off, the more hurt he’s going to be that you hid it from him!”

“Taiga, please,” Keitaro pleaded. “I can’t. Not now. I just got my best friend back, I don’t want to risk him getting mad at me again. Please.”

“I’ll tell him,” Yoichi interjected.

They turned to stare at him in surprise, both having apparently forgotten he was still there. Yoichi sipped his coffee and looked back, impassive.

“You will?” Taiga asked.

Yoichi shrugged. “Sure. Why not?”

“Yoichi, I don’t know,” Keitaro said, uncertain. “I mean, thanks for offering, but it has to be done right-”

“I couldn’t do it much worse than you two managed before,” Yoichi pointed out, and was satisfied to see that shut Frogboy up.

“He’s got a point, Keitaro,” Taiga said.

Keitaro sighed. “I don’t know. I feel like it should come from me.”

Yoichi stood up. “Listen, I got this, okay?” he said. “Me and Torch-head have a few things to straighten out between us anyway. What’s one more? I’ll get him to text you later.”

“You’re gonna tell him _now_?” Keitaro asked.

“Why wait? Yeah, I’m gonna tell him now. No time like the present, right?”

Keitaro and Taiga looked at each other, then back at Yoichi.

“Okay,” Keitaro said.

“Thanks, Yoichi,” Taiga said.

“No problem,” Yoichi replied. “But you guys should probably head back home before I tell him. You’re a cute couple, and I’d hate to see you both get murdered if Torch-head takes the news badly.”

He walked out of the cafe, chucking to himself at the looks on their faces.

Yoichi knocked on the door.

“Hiro?” he called. “It’s me. Open up.”

After a moment, Hiro opened the door. He stood blocking the doorway, hands on his hips, an unamused expression on his face.

“Oh, so you came back, didya?” he said.

“Well, I forgot my phone.”

“Har de har har.”

“Look, I’m sorry for storming out, okay? I just thought you and Frogboy could use some space to talk things over.”

“Mnnhhh.”

Hiro grudgingly stepped aside and let Yoichi back into the apartment, closing the door behind them.

Yoichi sniffed the air. “What smells good?”

“Pumpkin pasta,” Hiro said sulkily, sitting down on the couch and tucking his legs up under his chin. “I already ate yours.”  
Yoichi sat down beside him. “Wait a second. _You’re_ mad at _me_?”

“Hmph! Yeah!”

_I shouldn’t find this cute,_ Yoichi thought. _I really shouldn’t._

“And why are you mad at me?” he asked.

“Because! You obviously don’t trust me! You think I’d go running back to Keitaro as soon as he snapped his fingers!”

“Wouldn’t you?”

“ _No!”_ Hiro cried. “That’s what we were talking about, actually! If you’d stuck around, you’d know that! We decided we were better off as friends.”

“Uh huh. That’s nice. And is that _all_ you talked about?”

Hiro glanced at him. “What do you mean?”

Yoichi shook his head. “I’ll tell you in a minute. First, there’s some stuff _we_ need to talk about.”

Yoichi sat down beside him on the couch. Hiro continued to look away from him, pouting, until Yoichi grabbed his chin and turned his face toward him.

“Torch-head, be serious. We need to talk,” Yoichi said.

Hiro sighed and stopped huffing. “Okay,” he said. Yoichi released his chin.

“I’m sorry I ran off,” Yoichi said again. “The truth is … it’s not that I don’t trust you. I just know how much Frogboy meant to you. And – I’m not sure if I could ever mean the same. I’m not exactly great at all of this mushy stuff. I nearly ruined our weekend like five times in the past few days! I’ve been trying to control my temper more, and think before I say stuff, but it’s – hard. Really hard.”

“I _know_ ,” Hiro said earnestly. “And I’ve noticed it! Honest I have. You’re doing really well, Yoichi!”

“Thanks. But I can’t help think – ah, fuck it. I can’t help think you’d be better off with someone who doesn’t have to try so hard. Someone like Frogboy. I bet all this stuff comes naturally to him.”

“Yeah, pretty much,” Hiro agreed with a shrug.

“Hiro! You’re not supposed to say that, damn it!”

Hiro snickered. “Well, it does. But he has his _own_ problems. Like being a complete doormat.”

“Heh. That’s true.”

Yoichi found himself looking into Hiro’s enormous amber eyes. “I need someone who can stand up for himself,” Hiro said. “Someone who isn’t afraid to tell me when I’m acting crazy.”

Yoichi smiled. “Not a problem.”

“And besides ...” Hiro trailed off.

“Yeah?”

Hiro steeled himself and looked Yoichi directly in the eye. “You don’t have to worry about that. About meaning something to me. You already do, Yoichi. Keitaro was incredibly important to me. _Is_ incredibly important to me. He was the first guy I ever fell for.”

Hiro swallowed. “But not the last,” he said.

He leaned across. Yoichi did the same. Their lips met.

When the kiss ended, Hiro was grinning from ear to ear. Yoichi couldn’t help but smile as well.

“Remember when we first met at the bus station yesterday?” Hiro asked.

“Yeah.”

“And you said you thought there was something different about me? My hair? But you couldn’t quite figure it out.”

“Yeah! I still can’t, to be honest.”

Hiro turned his head to one side. “Look closer,” he said.

Yoichi squinted at Hiro’s hair. It looked exactly the same as it always did, a crazy starburst of orange spikes, but there was something not quite right.

Then he saw what it was.

“Your hair pin!” Yoichi cried. “It’s not there any more.”

Hiro smiled, gratified that Yoichi had figured it out.

“Why’d you take it out? Not that I’m complaining. Kinda made you look like a girl, anyway.”

Hiro swatted him on the arm. “It did _not_ ,” he said. “It made me look cute.”

Yoichi chuckled. “A cute girl.”

“Yoichi!”

“Whatever you say, Torch-head. Why’d you take it out, then?”

Hiro sighed. “It was a present. From Keitaro. A long time ago. It represented a memory of a really special day we once had. It kinda came to represent our friendship. To me, at least. I kept wearing it, hoping he would one day notice and see what it meant, but he never did. Not really. I mean, he sort of noticed one time, but I could tell he didn’t really get it. Even after I tried to explain it to him.” He sighed.

“That’s a really shitty present,” Yoichi said.

Hiro swatted him again. “Shut up. Anyway. I took it out because I’m not that person any more. I’m glad Keitaro and I are still friends, but I’m not gonna waste my life moping after him.”

“About time,” Yoichi teased. Then, more genuinely, he added: “I’m glad you told me.”

Hiro smiled. “Me too.”

“Can I ask you a really important question?” Yoichi asked seriously.

Hiro nodded. “Of course!”

Yoichi took a deep breath, readying himself. Then, he said: “Did you _really_ eat my pasta?”

Hiro giggled. “Yeah, sorry. I needed some comfort food. There’s cereal in the cupboard.”

“You’re killing me, Torch-head,” Yoichi sighed.

Yoichi got up and went to pour himself a bowl of cereal in the kitchen.

“Hey,” Hiro called in from the living room, “you said there was something else you wanted to tell me. What was it?”

Yoichi paused in the act of pouring in the milk. “Uh – nothing, never mind.”

“Aw, come on, Wolfboy! You can’t do that. Tell me!”

Yoichi brought his cereal back into the living room. “I kinda don’t want to, now things have calmed down.”

“Why? Is it bad?!”

“No! Well, not really.”

“Then why can’t you tell me? Tell meeee!”

“But you’re in a good mood. We’re having a nice time.”

“So it’s something that will make me feel bad?”

“...”

“Something that happened tonight?”

“...”

“It’s not something about Keitaro, is it?”

Yoichi took a spoonful of cereal and said nothing, yet his eye must’ve twitched.

“It _is_ about Keitaro! Tell me! You can’t keep me in suspense like this! Come on!”

Yoichi sighed. “Okay. But you gotta promise not to freak out, all right?”

“Fine! Sure! Just tell me!”

“Promise.”

“I promise! I promise!”

Yoichi took a deep breath. “He’s dating someone.”

Hiro blinked. He looked slightly stunned, as though someone had just walloped him over the head.

“I – huh. Oh. Kay. Well. I guess that makes sense. I wonder why he didn’t tell me himself? And how did _you_ find out?”

“Well, I kinda ran into his date after I left.”

“His date was here? _Tonight_? Why didn’t he say anything?!”

“Well, I think he planned to, but when he saw me he got flustered and chickened out. He was expecting to talk to you alone.”

“Oh. I see. That’s why he said his sister brought him.”

“Yeah.”

“So – did you get a good look at the guy? What’s he like?”

“Um ...”

“Wait,” Hiro said, frowning. “Is it someone we _know_?”

“Uh ...”

“It’s not Natsumi, is it?” Hiro pleaded.

“Pssh. No. He’s too busy AceTiming Hunter these days.”

“Then who is it? Come on, Wolfboy! Tell me!”

“Okay. You promised not to freak out, remember?”

“TELL MEEEEEE!”

“It’s Dynamite.”

Hiro gave him a withering look. “Very funny. No, seriously, who is it?”

“I’m serious. He’s dating Taiga.”

“Yoichi, come _on_. I’m not in the mood for joking around!”

“I’m not joking! He. Is. Dating. Taiga. They. Are. A. _Couple_. I don’t know how else I can say it.”

Slowly it dawned on Hiro that Yoichi was telling the truth. His expression darkened.

“You’re serious,” he said.

Yoichi nodded.

“Keitaro is dating Taiga. Taiga Akatora. From Camp Buddy.”

“Uh huh.”

“The guy who tormented us all summer. Who almost got Keitaro kicked out of camp. Who _burned_ his _journal_. That Taiga Akatora.”

“That’s the guy, yeah.”

Hiro stood up. He went over and grabbed his phone from the coffee table.

“What are you doing?” Yoichi asked.

“I’m just gonna call my best friend,” Hiro said, “and ask him if he’s _lost his fucking MIND!_ Are you _KIDDING_ me?! Taiga! _TAIGA?!”_

Yoichi jumped up and grabbed Hiro’s phone, holding it out of reach. The younger boy jumped up and tried to snatch it back.

“Hey! Gimme that!”

“Nope. Not until you calm down. You call Keitaro like this, you guys will fall out again and then I’ll have to listen to you moping about it.”

“But I-”

“Nope! Sit down! Now!”

Hiro threw himself onto the couch, arms folded across his chest. “Taiga,” he muttered in disbelief. _“Taiga!_ What is he _thinking_?!”

“Hey, I was surprised too,” Yoichi said, “but you gotta admit, Dynamite’s changed a lot in the past few months. He’s not the same jerk he used to be.”

“But Keitaro was obviously into him back when he _was_ being a jerk!” Hiro protested. “Why else would he have given him so many second chances?”

Yoichi said nothing, as Hiro had echoed his own thoughts from earlier.

“I can’t believe it,” Hiro said, more to himself than Yoichi. “I _knew_ he had feelings for someone else. I _knew_ I wasn’t crazy. I just thought he had better taste! I mean, _Taiga_!”

“Come on, Torch-head. It’s not exactly a mystery. Dude’s pretty hot.”

“Okay, _fine._ He’s nice to look at. But his personality _sucks_! Someone like that doesn’t just change overnight. And Keitaro’s a sweet, innocent guy! He doesn’t belong with a jerk like Taiga.”

“I mean, Keitaro could probably say the same thing about you and me,” Yoichi pointed out.

Hiro spluttered in disbelief. “That’s completely different! You’re nothing _like_ Taiga!” he insisted.

“Sure I am!” Yoichi replied. “We’re both tough, badass, macho guys with muscles. Mine are a lot bigger, of course, but Dynamite’s not too shabby. He’s even got abs.”

“Gah, that’s not what I mean! I’m talking about your personalities! You’re a pussycat compared to Taiga!”

“ _What?!”_ Yoichi looked genuinely offended.

“You are!” Hiro paced the room, gesticulating to make his point. “You’re like one of those big, grumpy junk-yard dogs. You’ll bark all day at anyone who comes onto your territory, but deep down, you just want someone to rub your tummy and feed you treats.”

Yoichi was rendered speechless with outrage.

“Taiga’s different. He’s like one of those psychotic little chihuahuas. He’ll lull you into a false sense of security, act all innocent, and then, as soon as you let your guard down, he’ll bite your nuts off!” Hiro shook his head. “I can handle you, Wolfboy. But there’s no _way_ Keitaro can handle someone like Taiga. He’s too much of a pushover.”

Yoichi folded his arms and huffed out a breath. “I’m way more badass than Taiga,” he said sulkily. “I lived on the streets! I robbed people! I was in a _gang_! All _he_ did was burn a book and take a picture of someone’s butt!”

Hiro glanced over, distracted from his rant by Yoichi’s tone of voice. He smirked when he saw Yoichi sitting with his arms crossed, pouting. “Aww, are you feeling jealous?” Hiro teased. “C’mere, tough guy!” Hiro pounced onto the couch beside him.

“Get lost, Torch-head! Hey! Get your hands out of there!”

On the final morning of his visit, Yoichi woke to the smell of frying bacon.

He stretched out in Hiro’s bed, content. The bed hadn’t really been big enough for both of them, and Hiro had spent most of the night wrapped around him like cling film, but Yoichi wasn’t complaining. The little dude hardly took up much room, anyway.

Yoichi grabbed his new phone from where it was charging on the night-stand. Hiro had helped him download a bunch of apps the night before, signing him up for Instaglam, AceTime and everything else he needed to keep in touch from Camp Buddy. Yoichi’s phone was now flooded with notifications, most of them from the other campers welcoming him to the online world. He tossed it back onto the night-stand, not ready to wade through any of them just yet.

The smell of breakfast made his stomach growl, so Yoichi rolled out of bed and padded naked into the living room.

“Morning,” he said through a yawn.

“Morning!” Hiro called cheerfully from the kitchen. “Breakfast will be ready soon! I know you’re bound to be hungry! We both used up a lot of energy last night, heheh!”

Yoichi threw himself down onto the couch and started flicking through TV channels. There was an old rerun of Super Jirou on channel six. He decided to keep it on, knowing Hiro would enjoy it.

“When did you get up?” Yoichi called. It was ten thirty. He only had a couple of hours before he had to get the bus back to Camp Buddy, he realised with a pang.

“Oh, a few hours ago,” Hiro replied. “I needed to get some things for breakfast. And pick up a few other things.”

“Like what?” Yoichi asked.

“Well ...”

Hiro walked into the living room. Yoichi turned and stared.

“Er – ta da!” Hiro said nervously.

“What the _fuck_?!”

Hiro’s trademark bright orange hair was gone.

He’d dyed it.

He’d dyed it a dark violet colour.

The same colour as Yoichi’s own hair.

Yoichi stared, at a loss for words.

“Do you like it?” Hiro asked nervously. “I thought, you know, after what we said last night, about me not holding on to old memories of Keitaro any more, that I should go for a change. And that’s why I dyed it orange in the first place, to remind him of Super Jirou. So I thought, um, now that I’m Team Yoichi, maybe I should try something different!”

Yoichi continued to stare.

“You’re not saying anything,” Hiro said worriedly,

“...”

Hiro’s face fell. “You hate it, don’t you?”

“...”

“Yoichi!” he cried, stamping his foot. “Say something!”

Yoichi cleared his throat. “You know how you told me to tell you when you were acting like a crazy person?” he said.

Hiro winced. “Too much?”

Yoichi nodded. “Way too much. Way, _way_ too much.”

Hiro’s shoulders slumped. “Aw. I thought I looked cute.”

“That’s not the point!”

Hiro suddenly grinned. “So you agree I look cute?”

Yoichi reddened. “I didn’t say that!”

“Well, everyone on Instaglam liked it!”

_“What?!”_ Yoichi had a horrible sinking feeling. “Torch-head,” he begged, “tell me you didn’t share a selfie of you looking like – this!!”

Hiro put his hand behind his head, embarrassed. “Well, actually ...”

Yoichi jumped up and ran into the bedroom. He grabbed his phone and started scrolling through notifications.

He saw Hiro’s selfie. The younger boy was winking into the camera and holding up two fingers in a v-pose, tongue poking out the side of his mouth. He _did_ look fucking cute, damn it.

Yoichi felt himself cringing at the messages popping up on his feed.

Natsumi had sent: [Love the new look, Hiro! Won’t Yoichi be mad you’re copying his style?]

Seto had replied: [I think it looks better on you, anyway!]

Eduard had commented: [Yaas! Slay, Hiro! Looking fierce!]

Felix added: [I guess Yoichi can’t call you Torch-head any more! Who are you now? Grape-head?]

[He can’t call him that without insulting himself!] Hunter had responded. [Nicely done, Hiro!]

The final comment read: [KYAAAA! SO CUTE!!! NEW OTP!!! YOU TWO LOOK LIKE BROTHERS NOW! NEVER IMAGINED YOU GUYS COULD BE SO KINKY?!?!] Yoichi didn’t recognise the username, but could guess who it was from.

He wished the ground would swallow him up.

He hit ‘like’ on the post and put his phone away.

“Yoichi? Are you – are you mad?” Hiro asked nervously from the doorway.

Yoichi took a deep breath and shook his head. “Nah. I’m not mad,” he said. “Just shocked. And honestly, a little disappointed.”

“Disappointed?” Hiro cried plaintively. “Why?” He looked deeply hurt.

“Well, I thought you were gonna start being your own person now. And stop defining yourself by other guys you liked.”

“Oh,” Hiro said, thoughtful. “Well, it’s not permanent. It’ll come out in a couple of washes. I just thought it would be a nice surprise for your last day.” He sighed. “I probably ruined it, instead.”

Yoichi came over and hugged him. “Nah. You didn’t. It’s fine. Just – maybe pick a different colour, huh?”

Hiro smiled up at him. He was about to say something, when the phone in his pocket dinged. He pulled it out and checked the notification.

“You liked my post!” he cried, vindicated.

“My thumb slipped,” Yoichi grumbled, brushing past him toward the kitchen. “Now where’s my damn breakfast?”

After breakfast, they showered, got dressed and took a walk through the city.

“When will you be able to visit again?” Yoichi asked.

“Not for a few weeks,” Hiro said. “My mom’s coming home in a couple of days and she usually needs a lot of care right after a treatment. Sorry.”

“That’s okay. I’ll just have to send you some pictures on my new phone instead.”

Hiro grinned. “What kind of pictures?”

“Whatever meals I’m about to eat. That’s what people do, right?”

Hiro swatted him on the arm. “Very funny, Wolfboy.”

They strolled along in silence for a while.

“You know, we never got to go to the arcade,” Yoichi pointed out.

“Are you kidding me? You almost trashed my PX4 after Seto beat you. I’m not taking you in there. You’d get arrested.”

“Eh, probably a good idea.”  
It was a crisp winter morning. There weren’t many people about, and it felt like they had the whole city to themselves.

Hiro sighed contentedly. “This has been the best weekend. I wish we could just stay like this forever.”

“Me too.”

They kissed.

“Your mom will be better before you know it,” Yoichi said. “And then you guys can come home. And we can do this all the time.”

Hiro nodded. “I hope so.”

Yoichi touched Hiro under the chin and tilted his face up to look at him. “Hey,” he said. “Look at me.”

Hiro raised his eyes questioningly.

“Everything’s gonna be okay. Okay?”

Hiro smiled. “Okay.”

They walked on through the streets, arm in arm.

The bus opened its doors and started to let people on board.

“This sucks,” Hiro said. His voice was sulky and thick with emotion. “I wish you could stay. Or I could go with you.”

“Come on, man,” Yoichi said. “We’ve said goodbye before. Don’t be such a sissy,” he added gently.

Hiro sniffed. “I know. But it’s different this time. I’m really gonna miss you, Wolfboy.”

Yoichi planted a soft kiss on the younger boy’s forehead. “You too, Grape-head.”

Hiro snickered as Yoichi held him against his chest. “Self-own, dude.”

“Why, hello there! Fancy meeting you again, son!”

Yoichi broke off from hugging Hiro and turned to see who had greeted them.

Great. This was all he needed.

“Hi again. Hi, Jemima.”

Jemima stared into space.

“Is this your little brother?” the old man asked, beaming at Hiro. “Why, he looks just like you!”

Hiro snickered.

“Yeah, this is my little bro,” Yoichi said. He grabbed Hiro and began administering a vicious noogie. “He’s kinda the runt of the family,” he added as Hiro struggled in his grip.

“Hey! Let go!” Hiro cried, squirming free.

“Are you both getting on the bus with us?” the old man asked.

“Nah, just me,” Yoichi said. “Why don’t I take Jemima for you?”

“Why, thank you, son! Such a nice boy!”

The old man handed over the dog. Yoichi helped him onto the bus and turned at the last minute, wanting a final glimpse of Hiro.

“See you later, ‘bro’,” Hiro said, smirking.

Yoichi chuckled. “Later, ‘bro’.”

The doors closed. Hiro watched the bus pull out of the station. He stared after it as it disappeared around the corner, vanishing from sight.

He sighed. It had been an amazing weekend, but real life was calling once more. He had so many errands to run. There were things his mom needed brought to the hospital. He had to get the apartment ready for her return. The idea of going back to the apartment alone, without Yoichi, hurt a lot, even when he told himself that at least his mom would be back there soon. In the short time Wolfboy had been there, he’d somehow left a mark on the place. For the first time it had started to feel less like a temporary refuge for Hiro and his mother, and more like a home. It wouldn’t be the same without Yoichi padding around the place naked, laughing like an idiot at the TV, rummaging through the cupboards for food, taking up the whole bed and snoring like a hibernating bear …

The memories brought a sad smile to Hiro’s face.

He could feel his responsibilities piling onto his shoulders again. He hadn’t even done much grocery shopping at the weekend, and he and Yoichi had already eaten most of the supplies in the apartment. He would need to talk to Keitaro at some point, too, especially about the Taiga issue. It would be difficult to do that without making his feelings abundantly clear, but he didn’t want them to fall out again so soon after making up.

Hiro tried to hold onto the feeling Yoichi’s visit had given him, a feeling of hope, that everything was going to turn out all right.

His phone dinged in his pocket again. Another notification.

He pulled it out, expecting a text from his mother or another Instaglam reply.

Instead, it was a text from Yoichi.

It said: [i love you too]

Hiro hugged his phone to his chest. Then he put it back into his pocket and headed off into the city.

**The End**


End file.
